


Five Mornings

by kwillow19



Series: Five Mornings [1]
Category: Amar a Muerte (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe- No Supernatural, F/F, Friends With Benefits, Original Character(s), Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-13
Updated: 2019-10-15
Packaged: 2020-08-20 13:13:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 37,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20228416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kwillow19/pseuds/kwillow19
Summary: A chance meeting in a club one night sets Juliana and Valentina off on a relationship they both struggle to define.





	1. Chapter 1

_This was a terrible idea._

Juliana turns her shoulders, sliding her slight frame through the sea of bodies in front of her. A strong mix of cologne, sweat, and alcohol hangs in the humid air. She slips narrowly past the packed dance floor making her way along the crowded bar. Colorful strobe lights bounce off the manufactured fog making the place almost impossible to navigate by sight. She’s desperately searching for any wall to stand against, just to get her bearings—just to collect her thoughts. Not that she foresees having any luck in that department with the exceptionally loud bass pounding in her ears.

This has to be the most popular night club in Mexico City. At least, Juliana hopes that it is. She really has no context for this type of thing. This really wasn’t her scene. She hadn’t ventured too far away from her usual spots since she moved to the city four months ago.

Yet, here she was.

This really was her mother’s fault. If Juliana hadn’t told her ma about her boyfriend breaking up with her last weekend, she most certainly wouldn’t be anywhere near this place. But, in a moment of weakness, she had revealed her newly dumped status. Her mother had promptly told her tía, and her tía then told her cousin. Her cousin called her up and convinced her that her normal way of consoling herself, with ice cream and Netflix marathons, was not sufficient. She knew her cousin meant well, but they really were just two very different people with very different ways of handling things.

A broken heart will convince you to do dumb things. Although, to be honest, she wasn’t really entirely sure her heart was even broken. It was just that her ex-boyfriend had also ended up being the only real friend she had made since she moved to Mexico City. She was more upset that his sudden change of heart dropped her friend count down to zero.

Juliana pushes a long breath out of her lungs as she steps away from the wall. Her general feeling of malaise and an overly handsy couple making out next to her was enough to end any fortitude she had strung together to make this outing happen. She was having no luck spotting her cousin amongst the throng of people. Her best shot now was to attempt to make her way outside without getting groped, and just send an apologetic text to her cousin about how she would catch her next time.

Juliana decides to follow back the same path that she entered the club in. With any luck, she’ll be just as successful at making her way out without bumping into too many people. Just as the thought leaves her brain, someone steps back from the bar knocking into her. An apology much too quiet to hear over the pulsing dance music escapes her lips, and then she feels a hand wrap around her wrist. She turns her head quickly with a glare already across her face.

“Juli!” her overly excited cousin, Natalia, yells at her. “There you are!”

So close. She was _so close_ to escaping. Juliana’s scowl softens into a smile as her cousin pulls her in for a quick hug.

“I’m so glad you made it,” Natalia continues.

Juliana opens her mouth and then pauses. She glances back toward the door. “I think I might actually go.”

She can’t tell if her cousin didn’t hear her or wasn’t paying attention, but she doesn’t acknowledge Juliana’s statement at all. She just grabs her hand and begins pulling her through the crowd.

“Come on. I want to introduce you to some people I met!”

Of course. Juliana had been here for four months and made one friend. Natalia had been in this club for an hour tops and already had several.

Her cousin pulls her across the dance floor, their hands struggling to stay connected as they attempt to maneuver through. Juliana isn’t quite sure how these people are even dancing, crammed together so tight. Thankfully, it’s not long before they make it to the other side. The crowd thins as Natalia drags her towards what appears to be a VIP area. Juliana checks her pockets to make sure her money and phone are still with her, as she eyes the long, plush red velvet couch along the wall. 

“Sergio!” Natalia calls out.

A dark haired man standing in the VIP area turns around suddenly. The stubble that surrounds the wide smile on his face contrasts against his boyish disposition. His eyes light up in recognition as he spots Natalia. He plucks two champagne flutes from the table in front of him and walks over.

“I finally found her,” Natalia tells him. “Sergio, this is my cousin Juliana.”

“Hola,” Sergio says, as he leans towards her, greeting her with a kiss on the cheek. He then extends his hands out, offering the drinks he’s carrying to them. “I see being beautiful runs in the family,” he states, with a wink.

Natalia laughs at his comment, swatting playfully at his shoulder. Juliana offers a close-mouthed smile in response and nods her head. She then purses her lips glancing back out towards the dance floor.

“You owe me a dance, chiquita,” Sergio says, drawing her attention back towards the pair.

He takes Natalia’s hand and raises it up, as he leads them out towards the dance floor. Natalia very eagerly follows Sergio and offers an excited smile to Juliana as they pass her by. Juliana attempts her best smile in response and then turns awkwardly back towards the other people occupying this sectioned off area.

“Well, it could be worse,” Juliana thinks to herself. At least, she has free drinks and a place to sit while she waits for Natalia to descend into drunken poor decision land with Señor Rico Suave. She watches them dance for a moment and then moves towards the couch she spotted earlier. She sits at the very end, dropping down fully and leaning back. Juliana absentmindedly takes a sip of the champagne in her hand. She winces at the taste. She’s not much of a drinker but quickly surmises that tonight is an excellent time to make an exception.

~~~

It’s not long before Juliana finds herself zoning out. A long workday coupled with an emotionally exhausting week are making it hard to focus. Not only was Juliana in a proverbial fog, she felt like she was in a literal one. The alcohol was luring her into a relaxed state and her eardrums were beginning to numb from the persistent beating of the music.

A light clinking sound pulls her attention back into focus. She looks down to see the flute in her hand being refilled. She scoffs ever so slightly at the sight, as she didn’t remember even finishing her first drink.

Juliana looks up to see an unnecessarily beautiful woman pouring the remains of the bottle into her glass. Her eyes stay locked on the bright blue ones looking at her, as she smiles in thanks. The woman nods her head once and then places the empty bottle on the table in front of them. She leans back into her original position at the other end of the couch. Her long limbsmade it easy for her to cross the distance to refill Juliana’s drink. Juliana’s not sure how much time has passed since they started staring at each other, but she’s finding it challenging to look away.

“Damnit, are you kidding me Vale?” A rough male voice breaks their attention from each other. “You seriously just topped off some random girl’s glass without asking me if I wanted anymore. And, now, we’re out!”

Juliana watches the woman roll her eyes in response. “You’re such a child. Just go buy more!”

The man looks at Juliana blankly for a moment. She can see the anger growing in his eyes. She braces herself for being yelled at when suddenly he turns on his heel and heads towards the bar. Juliana releases a breath and then shakes her head.

“Don’t mind him. He’s just a spoiled asshole,” the woman says.

“No, I understand. He’s drinking,” she responds. “He’s probably usually a nice guy.”

“I dated him for two years. He’s most certainly an asshole.”

Juliana laughs at the woman’s comment and relaxes back into her seat. Something about her presence is making Juliana feel quite calm despite the circumstances.

“You looked like you could use it more than him, anyway,” the woman comments.

Juliana lifts her eyebrows and her glass in agreement. At the moment, she’s having trouble stringing together a response that won’t just quickly dissolve into some sort of sad, self-pitying rant. So she holds her words and takes another sip of her drink.

The man from earlier then returns in a huff complaining about the bottle service at the club being a joke. It launches him and the woman sitting next to her into a bickering match that she has no interest involving herself in. It does, however, inspire her to take another long swig of her champagne.

~~~

“Julieta!” Sergio yells, catching Juliana’s attention.

She had just returned to the VIP area from an unexpectedly long trip to the bathroom. The line was quite ridiculous and the stall was disgusting, and there was no way Juliana was leaving without washing her hands. Of course, that involved some creative maneuvering around a very drunken pep talk between two strangers and a woman that thought for some reason the tiny mirror in this public restroom was the best possible place to launch into a staring contest with herself. Thankfully, the alcohol in Juliana’s system gave her the patience to prevail.

“Juliana,” she corrects Sergio.

“Right. Sorry,” he offers quickly. “I need a big favor.” He motions back to the couch behind him, bringing his hand up to point to the woman Juliana had spoken with earlier. “That’s Valentina,” he explains. “If I give you her address, can you please make sure she gets home safely?”

“Me?” Juliana asks, perplexed by the request.

“Lucho, Natalia and I are on our way to a party, but she doesn’t want to go. Usually, I would just drop her off. But her and Lucho are both way too drunk and they’re making a scene. I just need to get him out of here before we get banned.”

“Who’s Lucho?”

“Valentina’s ex,” Sergio states. “He’s the one that’s been hanging around her all night. I swear, they do this every time.”

Juliana sighs in response. How does she always get roped into stuff like this? This was supposed to be her night of self indulgence.

“You never want to do anything!” Lucho yells loudly.

His aggressive behavior is starting to draw more than just Sergio and Juliana’s attention. Sergio turns back to her and places a hand on her forearm.

“Por favor,” he pleads.

Juliana stares at him for a moment. Her cousin better appreciate this.

“Fine,” she responds. “Have Natalia text me the information.”

“Oh my god. I owe you!” Sergio says, as she steps away from her. He grabs Lucho and starts to push him into the crowd. Juliana can see them arguing, but can’t make out what they’re saying. It doesn’t really matter, she guesses. Sergio appears to be deescalating the argument as they make their way towards the exit.

Juliana turns back around, as she rubs at her neck. She eyes the woman on the couch. Her slouched frame is accompanied by a distant look in her eyes and a pout on her face. Juliana bites at her lip while she takes a few tentative steps in her direction. She hesitates for a moment and then sits down next to Valentina.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm already breaking my planned chapter structure. But I wanted to put a little something out there. This is kind of a teaser, I guess. Just a quick start to get the ball rolling. This should be a fun one! Hope y'all enjoy :)
> 
> Tumblr: @kristonica


	2. Chapter 2

Juliana leans back against the plush red couch cushions. She slides her palms along the tops of her thighs, the coarse texture of her jeans creating the slightest resistance against the motion. A full breath escapes her lips, as she surveys the crowd in front of her. The club is not quite as packed as before but still pretty busy. The thundering, persistent beat of a steady stream of remixed pop hits continues to keep the dance floor full.

“You’re not going to the party, either?”

The question from Valentina prompts Juliana to turn her head to the right. She opens her mouth to respond with an affirmation that she had no interest in it, when a sudden realization causes Juliana to pause. She lifts her eyebrows, as a slight pout of consideration crosses her face.

“I wasn’t really invited,” she explains.

Valentina hums in response. She seems comfortable and settled into her position. Juliana’s eyes scan her profile tracing down the slope of her nose, the length of her long neck, and finally landing on her arms crossed against her chest. She notices a tall, clear shot glass perched between Valentina’s fingertips. Her eyes linger there, taking in the structure of the other woman’s hands and slender fingers.

Valentina finally glances to the side, catching Juliana’s stare fixed upon her.

“You want some?” she asks, extending the shot glass towards Juliana.

“No,” Juliana replies. A spark of curiosity flashes across her eyes. “Well, what is it?”

“Mezcal.”

Juliana leans forward and cautiously takes a sniff of the offered glass.

“Whoa,” she responds. She raises her hand to cover her mouth from her sudden stuttered coughs. “I think I’ll pass. I mean, I’m drunk. But I’m not _that_ drunk.”

Valentina laughs lightly and shakes her head. She bites at her bottom lip, as she continues to size up Juliana. Their eyes meet and she smiles in response.

“What?” Juliana asks.

“You’re funny,” Valentina states quickly.

Juliana feels a fluttering in her chest at the idea that Valentina finds her to be anything. 

“It’s not that bad.” Valentina says right before she tips up the glass to finish what was left of the shot. She then moves forward to pour herself more from the bottle sitting on the table in front of them.

Juliana feels her phone vibrate in her back pocket, and she leans to the side for a moment to retrieve it. A preview of a short text from Natalia flashes across the screen. It simply reads, “Ur the best!!!” with a series of emojis that she’s sure mean something. Juliana playfully rolls her eyes in response and drops the phone down into her lap.

“Everything ok?” Valentina asks, as she takes a small sip from her newly refilled glass.

“Yeah. It’s just your friend, Sergio, asked me to help get you home. I was waiting on my cousin to text me the details. But I’m not sure he passed along the message. My cousin is not the most reliable person and tends to get easily distracted. All I got was a ‘thank you’ and a dancing lady, heart eyes, a duck, and what appears to be a pineapple. And, I have a feeling that was probably my best and only shot at communicating with her tonight.” Juliana abruptly stops talking and looks over at Valentina. “I’m sorry. That was probably too much information.”

A small smirk plays across Valentina’s face revealing that she continues to be amused by the other woman.

“Sergio thinks I need a babysitter, huh?” Valentina asks, as she shakes her head and then takes another small sip. “I’m not even that drunk,” she mutters. “I am, a little. But I’ve definitely been worse. I can get myself home.”

“I think he was just worried about you,” Juliana says, in an attempt to explain the request. “There was this whole 'fighting with your ex' part, too.”

“I don’t want to talk about Lucho,” Valentina states curtly. “I’m sorry Sergio guilted you into staying with me.”

“I don’t mind.”

“Seriously. I’m fine,” Valentina replies. “If you want to go, I understand.”

Juliana shakes her head lightly. “I’d rather know you got home safely. I mean, how do I know you’re not really trashed?”

Juliana’s smile gives away that she’s mostly teasing. Valentina sits up at the comment, turning towards the other woman and staring directly in her eyes.

“Do I look drunk to you?” she asks, clearly.

“Not really. But, then again, I just met you. You could be a coherent, intelligent, very charming drunk.”

Valentina’s eyes are bright and attentive as she stares back at Juliana. She bites at her lip, again, and Juliana’s eyes drop down to her mouth. She fights to slowly pull them back up to meet Valentina’s gaze.

“Besides, I could use the company tonight,” Juliana says. Her voice just above a whisper.

Valentina reaches out softly touching Juliana’s wrist. Her fingertips feel cold and wet from the condensation on the shot glass.

“I can’t imagine you’d have trouble finding company,” Valentina responds. She lifts her eyebrow, silently questioning Juliana’s earlier statement.

Juliana blinks back the sudden tears she feels forming in her eyes.

“Now, it’s my turn to say I don’t want to talk about my ex.”

The alcohol in her system is making her overly emotional and sensitive. Valentina’s hand on her wrist feels more distracting than it should. She glances down and catches sight of the glass in Valentina’s other hand. A rare surge of compulsion bubbles up within her, and she bravely takes it from the other woman. She throws her head back, as she swallows the liquid. The shot glass was only about a third full, but it’s enough to burn her throat and deflect her wandering thoughts.

When Juliana brings her head back level, she sees a surprised Valentina watching her. Juliana leans forward, moving her face close. She places the glass back in Valentina’s open palm. Juliana licks her lips and then glances quickly at the crowd.

“Do you like to dance?”

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the warm welcome back! Posting these little bite-sized chapters is usually not my style, but I'm kind of only finding small pockets of time to write. So I guess this is what we're going to do with this story. Hopefully, I can update more frequently in exchange. As always, hope you enjoyed ;)


	3. Chapter 3

Juliana tugs at Valentina’s hand that is tightly clasped in her own. Earlier, when she had asked the other woman if she liked to dance, Valentina had replied that she did but that she wasn’t very good at it. It was a noncommittal kind of response that was just positive enough to justify dragging the reluctant woman out to the dance floor.

They had finally reached a point in the evening where the club crowd was starting to lessen a little. The patrons of this place seem to move in swells, rushing in with the tide and then back out altogether to a new destination. Juliana spots a small, open space on the floor that will give them enough room to actually move.

When they reach it, she relaxes and lets the beat of the song drive the sway of her hips. Juliana closes her eyes and breathes in deeply. She feels a little unbalanced from the alcohol but free of any self-conscious awareness that would cause her to hesitate. Juliana loves to dance—mostly in the privacy of her own apartment. It’s not that she felt shy about dancing in front of others. She just never enjoyed the drama that ‘going out’ carried along with it.

She turns back around to find Valentina sort of half-heartedly bouncing to the rhythm of the song. Even in the low lighting, she can see the blush on her cheeks. Valentina’s movement slows to a stop, and she tilts her head back in embarrassment.

“I told you I’m not very good!” she offers in defense.

“Valentina,” Juliana says, drawing her name out with a laugh. “You’re fine. Come here.”

She extends both of her hands out towards the other woman, motioning for her to take them. When Valentina does, Juliana finds herself rubbing her thumbs gently over her skin in a slow, soothing pattern. Their eyes are connected in a way that is making Juliana’s heart beat a little faster. 

She finally breaks their stare, looking down at their joined hands. She glances at the space between them and pulls her closer.

“Put your hands here,” she says, as she guides Valentina’s palms to her shoulders.

Juliana tentatively touches Valentina’s hips. She focuses on the beat, again, and she begins moving them in sync with it. Valentina is a little stiff at first, but eventually her motion becomes more fluid. She’s matching Juliana’s rhythm, as she relaxes into the moment. Her gaze moves up from the floor to meet Juliana’s own.

They smile openly at each other. Then Valentina uses her grip on Juliana’s shoulders to pull them even closer. She leans her head forward over Juliana’s shoulder and places her mouth close to her ear.

“It’s not fair,” Valentina says softly.

“Que?” Juliana questions. She turns her head a little to glance at Valentina’s face.

“You seem to know my name, but I don’t know yours.”

Juliana mimics Valentina’s movement from before, placing her mouth close to the other woman’s ear.

“Juliana.”

Valentina simply smiles in response.

The smirk on Juliana’s face is unmistakable as she slides her hands behind Valentina’s hips. She uses the motion to move in closer, resting her palms on the small of the other woman’s back. She pulls them together, as they continue to sway to the music.

Juliana is content to stay quiet during this time. It’s a rare occasion in her life where she can embrace not overthinking something and actually just enjoy the moment.

One song completes and another blends in seamlessly. The consistent pounding of the bass tying them together. Throughout this time, her and Valentina only communicate through expressions—with the lift of a brow or a change in the eyes. They laugh lightly together as they continue to dance, satisfied to just be absorbing each other’s presence.

Juliana reaches up to take Valentina’s hands in her own. She puts a little distance between them, releasing one. She then uses her grip to encourage Valentina to spin. The other woman smiles widely as she completes the rotation, moving her hips confidently.

Valentina then returns the favor, attempting to spin Juliana. As Juliana is turning, their grip becomes awkward and they release their hands. Juliana finds herself stumbling ever so slightly.

She unexpectedly feels someone grabbing her hips. In an attempt to stabilize herself, she places her hands on the biceps of the man in front of her and looks up. She offers him a closed-mouth smile in thanks for helping her not fall. He takes the look as encouragement and moves closer to Juliana. Her small smile turns into a wince, as she fights her immediate instinct to push him away.

He seems like a fine enough fellow, but Juliana’s focus lies elsewhere tonight. She politely entertains the stranger’s interest for a moment and then tries to step back. He responds by grabbing onto her hips harder to keep her in place. The motion startles her and this time, when she feels the need to push away, she allows herself to react by placing her hands on his chest and applying more force.

Thankfully, this action breaks his grip. She takes a quick step back, as he moves forward again. Juliana swallows dryly, her nerves rising at the encounter.

Suddenly, she feels Valentina move up behind her—fitting their bodies together snugly. The other woman’s long arm is over Juliana’s shoulder and draped across the top of her chest. She’s staring at the man sternly as he approaches. Juliana reaches up and grabs Valentina’s hand, intertwining their fingers.

Where territorial behavior typically would bother her, she finds herself pleased with Valentina’s demonstration. Before she realizes what she’s doing, she turns her head to the side and places a long kiss on Valentina’s cheek. 

At that, the man concedes raising both of his hands and finally stepping away.

Valentina stays locked in her position, but moves her head back just enough to look at Juliana’s face. When their eyes meet, they both burst into a shared laugh at the man’s reaction. Juliana feels Valentina’s chest shake against her, as her laughter starts to die down. She watches the other woman’s smile relax and her eyes drift down to Juliana’s lips. Juliana turns in the embrace, so that they’re facing each other again. Her hands naturally make their way to their previous position on Valentina’s back.

Juliana leans forward, resting her forehead gently against Valentina’s. The women close their eyes and sway slowly together. Juliana’s not entirely sure what song is playing or what tempo is pulsing through the speakers. She just wants to hold Valentina close, so she does.

Only when she hears the other woman speak does she open her eyes.

“I think I’m ready to go home,” Valentina states.

Juliana nods in agreement.

~~~

The soft sounds of tires against pavement and the natural shifting of the vehicle are the only noises in the quiet cabin of their shared ride.

When they were exiting the club, Juliana had made an attempt to call them an Uber. Valentina quickly shut her down informing her that she had it handled. They had somewhat nervously stood in the cool night air, both checking their phones and making light conversation while they waited.

Juliana wasn’t sure how Valentina had access to this car service so late at night, but the soft leather seats and impeccable interior were a pleasant surprise. She assumes she should have expected as much since she had met her in the VIP section.

“You ok?” Valentina asks.

Juliana turns her attention from the window to the woman sitting very closely beside her.

She nods her head lightly and offers a small smile. “My eardrums are still numb. I feel like I’m underwater.”

“I know what you mean.”

Valentina raises one hand to the side of her head while the other slips onto Juliana’s thigh. She watches Valentina shake her head in attempt to clear her ears.

Juliana looks down, fighting the smile forming on her lips. ‘That was smooth,’ she thinks to herself, as she eyes Valentina’s hand sitting about midway up her thigh. The woman’s long fingers start to gently rub across her leg, making their way to the inseam of Juliana’s jeans and back to their original position.

She glances over at Valentina, contemplating whether she should return the gesture. But Valentina’s short skirt sits further up on her legs and, even in her slightly intoxicated state, the touch seems too bold.

‘What am I doing?’ Juliana silently questions herself. She closes her eyes tightly and lets her head fall back against the seat in response. If anyone was to ask her to explain how she ended up buzzed in the back of a much too expensive SUV with a beautiful stranger rubbing her leg, she’s confident that she would be at a total loss.

This night was supposed to be over hours ago. At most, she was supposed to be safely chaperoning a random drunk girl home. As the seconds crawl by, she was finding it harder and harder to convince herself that that’s what was happening here.

The vehicle pulls to a stop and Juliana opens her eyes. Valentina is looking down at her hand that rest on Juliana’s thigh.

“I should have asked you this before, but did you want to be taken home? Or…” Valentina pauses, her voice a little shaky. “Do you want to come up?”

Juliana feels her heart thundering against her chest. She bites at her lip, as a million responses fly through her mind. Valentina reads the panic in her eyes perfectly and shakes her head a little in response.

“Oh. I was thinking we could just have some water and talk,” she explains. “You mentioned you wanted company. I didn’t mean like…”

“Yeah,” Juliana says, quickly letting her off the hook. “I didn’t think you meant that. I just—“

Valentina’s brow scrunches in the cutest, most innocent expression.

“Yeah,” Juliana repeats. “Let’s go up.”

~~~


	4. Chapter 4

Juliana slowly leans back against the wall of the elevator. She’s thankful for the cool sensation of the metal against her overheated skin. Her thoughts are still racing a little from their shared ride here. She watches Valentina in front of her punching a code in the elevator panel. Her fingers move swiftly and, after a beep, she hits the button for the top floor. A bright green light encircles the number 14. The barely detectable vibration of the elevator is the only indication that they were actually moving.

Valentina turns towards Juliana, resting herself against the adjacent wall. They both smile at each other and then look down shyly.

The ride up and the short walk down the hall are quiet. When they reach the door to her apartment, Valentina quickly punches in another code on the key pad. There’s another beep that is followed by the solid mechanical sound of a lock release.

Valentina grabs the handle and turns her upper body slightly. She leans her shoulder against the surface of the door, letting her weight naturally push it open. She looks at Juliana and then nods her head once as she leads the way into the apartment.

“Sorry if it’s a mess. I wasn’t really expecting company,” Valentina says, with her back to Juliana and a slight wave of her hand.

Juliana glances around the apartment. The space was quite large in comparison to her place. It’s modern and sleek—all chrome and marble. Valentina walks through her living room making her way behind a deep couch covered in what Juliana knows to be an expensive fabric. There were little touches here and there, splashes of color with over-sized pillows and family photos in mismatched frames that felt decidedly more like Valentina than the rest of her surroundings. Juliana focuses her eyes attempting to spot a piece of trash or a speck of dust or really anything out of place. It all looks immaculate.

“This place is a real disaster,” Juliana comments sarcastically, with a smirk on her face.

Valentina turns back around and rolls her eyes with a smile. She bites her lip eyeing Juliana closely.

“Hopefully, you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”

Valentina extends out her hand and Juliana places hers in it softly. Valentina tightens her grip and leads them into the kitchen. The two spaces are connected in an open floor plan with only some square footage and a long, tall kitchen island dividing them. The pair walk over to the refrigerator, and she releases Juliana’s hand as she opens the door. She extends her arm in, quickly retrieving a rather large bottle of water and unscrewing the plastic cap. Valentina pitches her head back, taking a long draw.

“I’m crazy thirsty,” she says, letting out a deep breath. She then offers Juliana the water bottle. “Too much dancing, not enough hydration. Would you like your own, or is this ok?”

“I’m fine to share,” Juliana responds. She grabs the bottle and takes a long drink herself, as she watches Valentina close the fridge door. “You sure the alcohol didn’t play a part in your dehydration?”

Juliana presents the water bottle back to Valentina. The other woman accepts it, and then she looks up with a small shrug as though she’s only mildly considering the thought. She steps around Juliana and makes her way back to the living room. Juliana stays frozen in place for a moment. She purses her lips and turns to follow her.

“Please make yourself comfortable,” Valentina says, looking back over her shoulder as Juliana enters the room.

Juliana takes a seat on the large sofa. She settles back, as she watches the other woman retrieve a remote from a shelf near her wall-mounted flatscreen. Valentina crosses the space to join her. She turns the TV on and immediately reduces the volume. She then takes a seat next to Juliana and tosses the remote onto the cushion next to her. She takes a quick drink and hands the water bottle back to Juliana.

Juliana eyes the screen, as she takes a sip. Something seems familiar about the images playing in front of her, and then it registers.

“Oh! I’ve seen this telenovela on Univision before,” she states, pleased with herself.

“Yeah. Sorry. I just left it on whatever station was on last. I think they replay a bunch of old stuff late at night.” Valentina moves to grab the remote. “I can find us something else.”

“This is good,” Juliana counters quickly.

Valentina pulls her feet up onto the couch, scooting back fully into the cushions and crossing her ankles underneath her. Her naturally long limbs extend out with her left knee resting in Juliana’s lap.

“So… you’re American?”

Juliana drags her attention from the TV screen and looks over at Valentina with a raised eyebrow in question.

“Univision,” Valentina explains simply.

“Ah. Yes. I’m from Texas,” Juliana clarifies. “I have family from here. Like, my cousin Natalia you met tonight.”

Valentina nods slowly, looking a little lost in thought. Juliana can see something churning behind those beautiful blue eyes—like something is clicking into place. Silence falls between them for a moment, and then Valentina looks down.

“I… uh… I actually went to boarding school in Canada for a couple years,” she says quietly. “Near Toronto.”

“How was that?”

“Weird, mostly,” she answers honestly. “It wasn’t bad, though. They finally got a Univision affiliate the last year I was there. It helped with the homesickness.”

Juliana offers her a small smile in understanding, and then extends her hand out giving the large water bottle back to Valentina. They both look back at the screen.

“Have you seen this one before?” Juliana asks.

Valentina shakes her head lightly. “I don’t remember.”

“You see, this guy here,” she states, pointing at the handsome gentleman on the screen—his bright blue eyes reminding her of the woman next to her. “He’s having an affair with that woman there.”

Valentina nods, still watching. “She looks like a Victoria's Secret model.”

Juliana laughs a little and continues. “That guy is actually married to that woman’s identical twin sister. But here’s the catch: his wife doesn’t know she has a twin. They were separated at birth or something. He runs into the twin one day thinking that it’s his wife. ‘Fate’ staged everything for them to meet. He’s unsure of how to break the news to his wife, so he doesn’t tell her. Then he slowly starts to fall in love with her twin. Now, he’s all conflicted about what to do because he loves them both.”

“How does it end?” Valentina asks. Her voice sounding a little thin in Juliana’s ears.

“I think ‘Fate’ comes back in and the twin disappears because she was never actually real. It was all just to teach him a lesson that if he looked at his wife with new eyes, he would fall in love with her all over again. So he shouldn’t take her for granted. I don’t know. Some of these shows just seem like obvious life lessons for men. Lessons that the wives watching hope their husbands will learn.”

Juliana turns back towards the other woman. Valentina’s chin is down and her eyes are tightly closed. Her shoulders are rising and falling as she takes shaky, labored breaths.

“I know what I said before, and I may totally be misreading the situation,” Valentina says softly, still not looking at Juliana. “And, you’re absolutely ok to say no. I just would never forgive myself if I didn’t ask. But… can I kiss you?”

A beat passes where the oxygen seems to disappear from the room entirely.

It’s then that Juliana realizes their position. After she had handed the water bottle back to Valentina earlier, she had let her hand drop down. She had let it drop down directly onto Valentina’s bare thigh. It was sitting in the same spot that she had dare not touch when they were in the car. And, to make matters worse, she was absentmindedly rubbing Valentina’s leg in the same fashion that was done to her before. She pulls her hand back quickly, as though the touch suddenly burns.

“I’ll take that as a ‘no,’” Valentina comments, her mouth hanging slightly open in pause.

Juliana is convinced that if she looks down at herself right now she’ll be able to see her own heart moving against her chest. It’s currently beating with such force. It’s been put through so much tonight that, if she survives this, she’s strongly considering going and getting it evaluated. Although, she wouldn’t need to be hooked up to one of those treadmill monitoring stations to get it going. All she would need is for Valentina to walk into the room.

She shakes her head, bringing herself back into the present moment. It finally registers with her that Valentina is retreating in embarrassment, which she finds to be the exact opposite of what she wants. She reaches out, placing her hand on Valentina’s forearm and the action keeps the other woman in place. Juliana then lunges forward, pressing her lips firmly against Valentina’s mouth. She releases her after a few seconds, sitting back into her original position.

The women just stare at each other—their eyes locked together. Juliana wishes desperately that she could hold a single thought in her mind, but the minute one shows up it’s just as quickly whisked away. All she can register is the deep breaths they’re both taking in unison.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gah. So I still didn't end this chapter where I intended to get us to. I'm just going to have to embrace my new life as fanfic tease. The good news is that I'm pretty much done writing the next chapter. I just need to finish up the final scene and do some editing. So it will be out soon! Hope this was enjoyable in the meantime :)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story was updated with two chapters in one day. So please go back and read the previous chapter first, if you haven't already.

Valentina reaches out slowly, tucking a stray strand of Juliana’s hair behind her ear. She then lets her hand slide down to cup the other woman’s jaw. The warmth of her palm lures Juliana into the touch and her eyes flutter closed. Juliana takes a few breaths and then opens her eyes. Her and Valentina lean forward in unison and their mouths connect again, this time in a more mutual embrace.

Juliana quickly discovers that the sensation of Valentina’s full lips against her own is instantly addictive. She tilts her head, slotting their mouths together easily. She takes Valentina’s top lip between her own, as the other woman captures her bottom one. Juliana hears Valentina breathe in through her nose as she repositions herself, moving her body closer.

Valentina’s lips taste like a mixture of the Mezcal they were drinking before and something distinctly different. Juliana’s not sure exactly what, but she’s eager to discover. Their mouths move against each others, swapping placement but only separating with the immediate intention of reconnecting. Juliana grips the back of Valentina’s neck, pulling them deeper into the kiss. When Valentina parts her lips, they both waste no time sliding their tongues together.

Juliana supposes that she should be panicking right about now—not because of the woman thing but that she’s not prone to random hookups. She’s kissed other people on the first night that she met them before, but she could easily count those encounters on one hand. Most of which were foolish college decisions. A couple of which she would actually describe as nice. But this was turning out to be anything other than nice.

Kissing Valentina was urgent and messy in the most intoxicating way. There was no usual self-imposed warning for her to slow down. It was all just ‘pedal to the floor.’ In fact, the idea of pulling away sounded like the worst possible option. This was all incredibly new to her. A fleeting worry crosses her mind that it’s just the alcohol, but she’s been drunk before. Even though Valentina’s kisses are making her head spin, the spike in adrenaline is making her feel incredibly sober in this moment.

She suddenly feels Valentina’s hands on her shoulders. The other woman uses the leverage to break their kiss. She doesn’t move away, though. She keeps their foreheads connected. Her eyes dance between Juliana’s gaze and Juliana’s mouth.

“Is this ok?” Valentina asks, between hot stuttered breaths.

Juliana doesn’t trust the ability of her voice to reply, so she just simply nods her head.

Valentina’s mouth twitches into a smile. She shifts her body, using her grip on Juliana’s shoulders to push her against the back of the couch. Valentina then climbs onto her lap, straddling her thighs. Juliana leans back in response. She rests her hands on the other woman’s hips, as Valentina settles in facing her.

When Valentina leans in to kiss her again, the urgency seems to have dissipated a little. Her kisses are slower and more thorough. Valentina licks the roof of her mouth and allows Juliana to return the favor. Things still feel a bit messy, but not due to lack of coordination or awkward timing. It’s just that neither of them are showing any interest in keeping this encounter clean. They’re indulging in the moment in the most decadent sense.

Juliana’s hands slide up a little, desperate to touch the warm skin of Valentina’s stomach. She slips them underneath her tight shirt, lightly tracing her fingertips across her sides. Juliana breaks their kiss, moving her lips down to Valentina’s jaw. She peppers the area with wet kisses and continues her path lower to her neck. As soon as she locates her thrumming pulse point, she latches on, briefly scraping the skin between her teeth.

Valentina lets out the softest whimper in response, and Juliana feels the vibration against her mouth. Juliana struggles to recall a time where she felt more turned on. There were moments, alone and with others, that she recalls feeling a strong desire. But everything in her recent memory is paling terribly in comparison.

She feels Valentina shift in her lap. The other woman moves back a little so she can make room to peel off her shirt, up and over her head. Once it’s removed, Valentina’s long silky hair falls back down in waves on her shoulders. She tosses her shirt behind her and places her hands on either side of Juliana’s neck. Valentina settles her hips down even lower, as she moves to reconnect their mouths. She pulls at Juliana’s swollen lips with her teeth and then latches onto her tongue sucking it deeply into her mouth.

It’s now Juliana’s turn to moan in response. Her hands slide up Valentina’s sides, ghosting across her ribcage and stopping just beneath her breasts. Juliana had noticed that the removal of Valentina’s top left the other woman’s torso completely bare. Unfamiliarity was causing her to pause, but instinct was telling her to move forward. She tentatively cups Valentina’s breasts, reveling in the soft skin at the underside of them. Valentina’s response was nothing but encouraging—she pants heavily as Juliana massages her.

Juliana’s hands slip down to Valentina’s thighs. They slowly make their way back to the other woman’s hips, but this time they slide underneath her skirt. She moves her mouth down to Valentina’s chest. She sucks at the skin there, leaving small love marks on the center of her torso. She turns her attention to Valentina’s breasts, taking an already stiff nipple into her mouth and working it with her tongue and teeth. She is obsessed with the whines of pleasure Valentina is emitting from her throat. The only thing proving to be more distracting is the strong roll of Valentina’s hips as she grinds herself into Juliana’s lap.

Valentina pulls Juliana’s head back up to look her in the eyes. She leans forward, gently placing their foreheads together again. Then she anchors one hand on Juliana’s neck and the other on top of Juliana’s wrist. She dips down kissing her lightly.

“Please,” Valentina whispers against her lips. She grabs tighter onto Juliana’s hand and pushes it towards her center. “Please, touch me. _Fuck._ I’m so wet.”

Juliana pauses as her fingers brush Valentina’s panties. The cotton slides against them, and she can feel the unmistakable heat and dampness seeping through.

This was it. She had let herself reach this moment. She had let things escalate and escalate until now she was faced with the reality of her choices.

She wanted to touch Valentina. _God, did she want to touch Valentina._ But this wasn’t an overly handsy make out session anymore. This was sex. This was sex with a stranger. This had never happened to her before. Juliana feels her nerves rise at the thought. She also mentally chastises herself for letting this be the proverbial line in the sand, when they had so clearly crossed so many before. She was past being able to deny that this is exactly what she wanted.

Juliana moves her fingers in an experimental stroke and feels Valentina tremble in response. Their foreheads are still pressed tightly together. The other woman releases the grip she has on Juliana’s wrist. Her long arms give her the ability to reach over Juliana’s shoulder and anchor a hand on top of the sofa cushion behind her. Her other hand still clings to the back of Juliana’s neck.

Sliding her fingers just a couple inches to the side, Juliana is able to slip underneath the thin barrier of Valentina’s underwear. She touches the other woman’s center directly, easily moving in the silky heat she finds in abundance there. Valentina rolls her hips at the touch, eager to start a rhythm between them. But Juliana is still testing the waters, validating what pressure needs to be applied to illicit which response. She moves her fingertips up, circling Valentina’s most sensitive spot.

The guttural moan that emerges from Valentina unhinges Juliana. She pulls her head back, desperate to look the other woman in the eyes. Valentina’s half-lidded stare finally connects with hers. The flush on her cheeks, chest and neck are burning bright pink.

“You ok?” Juliana asks softly.

This time, Valentina just nods in response. When she actually speaks, it startles Juliana a little.

“I just really like you touching me,” she states simply.

“I really like touching you, too,” Juliana replies with a small smile, as she continues to stroke the slick length of Valentina.

Juliana finds herself getting lulled into the sensation. It feels so amazing to touch Valentina like this. She didn’t know this is something she’d ever respond to, but it’s pumping her blood faster than she thought possible. Juliana shifts her hips, feeling how soaked she is. She’d be embarrassed if Valentina wasn’t experiencing the same. She decides in these brief seconds that this was worth whatever consequences may come. Her movement becomes stronger and more vigorous. She feels the sweat collecting on her brow.

As Juliana continues to work her arm, she feels one of her fingers slip up into Valentina. She halts immediately, worried that she’s done something unwanted. Valentina connects their eyes again and nods vehemently in permission. Juliana then slides two fingers up into her. They keep their eyes locked, as Juliana attempts to wordlessly communicate her intentions. It’s reminiscent of their dance before at the club, and Juliana is doing her best to establish their rhythm.

They quickly fall in sync and both pant big lung-full breaths of air as they move together. Juliana’s wrist isn’t at the most fantastic angle ever. But there’s no way in the world she’s moving it away. The strain is also evident in Valentina’s thighs as she straddles Juliana’s lap, grinding her hips down meeting her thrusts up.

The words _urgent_ and _messy_ run through Juliana’s mind again, as they both work towards their mutual goal of Valentina’s release.

The high-pitched sounds that escape Valentina’s throat seem to be an indication of her impending climax. Valentina places her mouth against Juliana’s, letting the woman swallow her desperate cries as she comes undone. She kisses Juliana deeply, as she continues to roll her hips as wave after wave of pleasure washes over her. She dips her tongue deep into Juliana’s mouth, scraping at her roof and her teeth. As Valentina finally begins to settle, her attack turns into soft kisses pushing and pulling at Juliana’s lips.

Their soft breaths echo off the walls, joined only by the low sounds of the telenovela still playing in the background. The women just stare at each other—almost in disbelief of what just transpired between them. They can’t stop smiling, as Valentina cups Juliana’s face.

“Wow,” Valentina says.

“Yeah,” Juliana replies quickly with a laugh.

Valentina joins her. As their light laughter dies down, Valentina’s eyes drift to Juliana’s lips and then back up.

“How quickly do you think we can get your pants off?” Valentina questions.

Juliana offers her only a smirk in reply, as she glances down towards her waist. Valentina grabs at the waistband of her jeans, quickly popping the button open and lowering the zipper. Juliana raises her hips up and dips her thumbs into the sides of her pants attempting to push them off of her as fast as possible.

~~~

The muted sounds of a honking car horn in the distance pull Juliana slowly awake. She pries her eyes open, her lids feel scratchy and dry as she makes the effort. She blinks a few times letting her vision focus. Juliana scans the dimly lit room surrounding her. Some morning sunlight is filtering in through the long cream colored curtains that adorn tall windows lining one of the room’s walls. The only other light in the room is from the images that dance across the TV that had been left on last night.

Juliana is laying on her side on a very deep and comfy couch. She adjust slightly, lifting her head and looking around. It’s then that she notices the arm draped across her hip. She glances back, taking in the vision of a very asleep and very naked Valentina spooning her. Her head is tilted back, resting on one of the brightly colored throw pillows she had spotted when she first arrived. They’re sharing a blanket she’s not entirely sure she’s ever seen before.

_Oh, fuck._ Juliana bites her lip, as she takes in a deep breath. She closes her eyes tightly. All of that really happened last night.

Juliana is most certainly sober. But, more than that, her hangover is now making its presence known causing her head to throb and her stomach to turn. She feels suddenly hot in all the places their bare skin touches. She moves very slowly, doing her best to slide out of Valentina’s embrace without waking her.

Then suddenly Juliana finds herself landing fairly unceremoniously on all fours on the floor next to the couch.

Thankfully, there’s a plush rug beneath her to break her fall. She groans slightly, as she moves to a sitting position on the ground. She leans back against the couch, as she runs a hand up through her hair. Juliana looks down, finding herself entirely too naked for her current mental state to handle. She notices a mixture of their clothes laying on the floor beside her. She sorts through them, collecting her things.

Juliana shuffles around on the floor, getting dressed as quietly and quickly as she can. She sways as her head thunders in pain at her sudden change in elevation.

She spots the half full water bottle they shared last night sitting on the coffee table. Perhaps, she should have made a better effort to drink more of it. Juliana scoops it up and tilts it back at her lips. She finishes off the bottle, releasing a breath as she wipes at her mouth.

Valentina then moves, startling Juliana a little. The woman pulls her legs closer to her torso, as she adjusts into more of a classic fetal position now that there’s room in front of her. She’s still sound asleep. Juliana feels exceptionally unsure of what she’s supposed to do next.

Everything is overwhelming, and she’s way too nauseous and distracted to make sense of things. She watches Valentina for a moment and then gets up walking over to the kitchen. She places the empty water bottle on the counter and opens the fridge in search of another one.

As Juliana shuts the door, her fingertips come up to rest on her lips and she pauses in thought. The unmistakable scent of Valentina fills her nostrils. She glances at her hand and the panic rises in her chest.

She swiftly makes her way back to the living room. She eyes Valentina closely, as she sets the new full water bottle on the table next to the couch. She spots the remote wedged between the arm of the sofa and the seat cushion. Juliana scoops it up, turns off the TV, and takes one last glance at the woman in front of her. She takes a few brisk steps away and then freezes.

Juliana turns back. She reaches down, adjusting the blanket to make sure Valentina is more fully covered. The other woman only hums sleepily in response. A small, closed-mouth smile forms on Juliana’s lips.

She lets out a shallow breath, as she comes to terms with her decision. Juliana makes her way to the front door and shuts it softly as she exits.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We finally made it to what was originally intended to be the cliffhanger at the end of the first chapter! My poor outline doesn't stand a chance with this one. Although, I'm staying pretty faithful to my original plot points so far. I feel like the rollercoaster has finally made its way up and we've crested the first hill. Now, we're ready for all the twists and turns. Hope you enjoyed ;)


	6. Chapter 6

“Juliana!”

The sound of her name draws Juliana’s attention up from the phone in her hand. She places her thumb over the power button, pressing it quickly to dim the screen and slides it into her back pocket. She tilts her head a little to the side to look around the patrons standing in front of her. The café was pretty packed for an early afternoon on a Wednesday. Juliana makes her away around the other people waiting and up to the counter. She looks at the barista expectantly.

“Juliana?” the woman asks.

She glances at her name sloppily scrawled on the side of the cardboard cup and nods with a small smile.

Juliana takes the much needed coffee in her hands and turns to make her way out. It was only half way through the week, but she felt like she had already worked a full one. Her job had been very busy the last few days. Where that usually excited her, instead, she found herself dragging here lately. She just wanted to sleep. Between the break up the previous week and her spontaneous night out last weekend, she felt like she had run a long distance marathon of emotions. Her focus just simply wasn’t there. Trying to literally _work_ through it wasn’t nearly the helpful distraction she was hoping for. She just wanted this week to be over with so she could crawl into her bed under the covers and disappear for a couple solid days.

As she opens the café door, the bright afternoon sun suddenly hits her directly in the eyes. Juliana squints in response. She ducks her chin down and quickly reaches up, sliding her sunglasses into position. The glare is still making it difficult to see. She hears voices in front of her, but before she can assess proximity, Juliana finds herself bumping right into someone. She steps back swiftly, holding the coffee out to hopefully avoid spilling it on either of them.

“Whoa! Sorry about that,” she hears a man state.

Juliana glances up to offer him an apology, but the owner of the voice is standing a little further away than expected. He is a couple feet back from her still holding the door open. As she glances to his right, she finds the person she actually ran into.

Familiar blue eyes lock onto hers and she feels her heart rate spike, once again. She swallows thickly. Juliana is finding her efforts to make a sound unsuccessful. Her mouth drops open a little, as she lowers her sunglasses on her nose. She stares in disbelief, attempting to confirm to herself that she really is seeing what she thinks she’s seeing.

“Hi,” Valentina says, her voice sounding higher than usual. The shock of the unexpected moment is evident on her face, as well.

“Sorry,” Juliana whispers.

There’s the slightest shift in Valentina’s eyes, and Juliana feels the unmistakable pang of guilt settle in her stomach.

“Vale?” the man questions, drawing her attention to him. A smirk is playing at his lips. “Do you two know each other?”

“Yes!” she responds, as though she’s almost startled by the question. “This is my friend…”

Valentina’s words stall out at the tip of her tongue. Juliana sees the panic in the other woman’s eyes, as Valentina’s mouth hangs open in pause.

“Juliana,” she fills in for her, quickly letting her off the hook.

She watches the pink flush form on Valentina’s cheeks. The other woman turns and motions to the man beside her. “This is my brother, Guille, and his fiancé, Renata.”

A shorter woman steps into view. Juliana hadn’t noticed her standing just behind Juliana’s brother. She offers them both a small wave.

“Nice to meet you,” Guille says with a nod. “It looks like you’re on your way out, but would you care to join us?”

Juliana can feel Valentina’s eyes intensely on her, and she struggles to stay focused on Guille.

“Thank you, but I really need to get back to work. I just stopped by for a quick pick me up,” she replies, holding up her coffee.

“Ah,” he comments. “Usually, at this time of day, if I’m dependent on caffeine to focus it means my head is already out the door.”

“The struggle is real,” Juliana offers in agreement, with a small laugh.

“Actually…” he says, stretching out the word as he glances towards his sister. Valentina gives him a look of warning, but he continues. “If your work can spare you, we could really use some help.”

“Help?”

“Renata and I are going to this charity thing tonight. We promised to bring cookies, so we’re all headed over Vale’s to bake...” He pauses and turns to look over his shoulder. “How many?”

“Ninety-six,” Renata supplies in a tone that reveals she’s not totally thrilled.

Guille laughs a little. “Ninety-six cookies. Vale has the best kitchen out of all of our condos. We’re just stopping by here for reinforcements before we get started.”

“I didn’t know you liked to cook,” Juliana comments to Valentina.

“Oh. I don’t,” she states. “This condo just had the best view. Anyway—”

“So you’ll join us?” Guille asks, cutting her off.

Juliana scrunches her brow in hesitation. Her mouth opens to offer an apologetic no, but before she can say the words she feels Valentina’s hand on her wrist. She looks down at the soft touch. The warmth she feels radiating from it, even in the presence of the glaring afternoon sun, makes her chest feel full.

“No pressure, but I’d like it if you could.”

Juliana finds herself caught in Valentina’s eyes. The request from the other woman is bouncing around inside her head. She blinks a couple times in an attempt to free herself from getting trapped in their shared gaze, but it’s ineffective. All she feels is her resolve slipping, and she finds herself acquiescing to the request with a small nod.

~~~

A sense of deja vu washes over her, as Juliana waits in the same spot against the wall that she was standing in before. She had stepped back to let her new friends order, while she sent a quick text to her boss to say she wasn’t feeling well and wouldn’t be returning for the day. As Juliana hits the ‘send’ button, she shakes her head. She’s still a little unsure of why she agreed to this so easily.

“I promise I didn’t forget your name.”

Juliana jumps at the words and looks up to find Valentina standing beside her. Their faces are now close, as the other woman had leaned over her shoulder to whisper in her ear. Neither of them make any attempt to move away. Juliana smiles, as she bites her lip.

“I was just surprised to see you, and my brain abandoned me,” Valentina explains. Juliana stares at her silently. “But I remember everything.”

Juliana feels her heart rate pick up, again.

“Me too,” she replies quickly. Her own voice sounding strange in her ears.

She’s not sure if now is the right time, but Juliana’s feeling the overwhelming need to explain her quiet exit four days ago. The sudden desire surprises her a little. She had done her best to push those thoughts out of her brain before. What was done, was done. Somewhere along the way, she had successfully convinced herself that the chance that they’d meet again was about as likely as Valentina perceiving what happened between them as significant.

The motion in front of Juliana catches her attention and she turns her head to see Guille approaching them. She watches him watching them. It’s almost comical the way she can see the gears turning in his head.

“So how do you guys know each other?” he asks nonchalantly, as he pushes his hands into his pockets.

Juliana looks over at Valentina giving her the courtesy of offering whatever information she feels comfortable sharing with her brother. But Valentina is quiet, as a flush of pink returns to her neck and chest. A flash memory of the other woman straddling her lap and her hands in unmentionable places dances across Juliana’s thoughts. She lets out a short breath.

“My cousin knows Sergio,” Juliana answers. “They introduced us at the club the other night.”

Guille glances between the both of them.

“Oh yeah?” he replies. “That must have been a good night. Vale showed up to lunch on Saturday—quite late I might add—still looking a little worse for wear.”

Valentina shoves at his shoulder, as he starts to laugh.

“If this is going to just be ‘embarrass my little sister’ hour, you’re welcome to bake cookies at your own place.”

Valentina’s name suddenly gets called out from behind the counter. She glances over and back to Guille. She raises her finger at him playfully.

“Behave,” she warns, as she steps away.

Both Valentina and Renata return fairly quickly with all of their drinks in tow. The group heads out to make the short trek to Valentina’s place. Guille and his fiancé walk in front of them chatting away, as Juliana and Valentina follow silently behind. Juliana is wrapped up in examining the streets and tall buildings that surround them. The area is very familiar to her, but brand new in the context of the woman beside her. It hadn’t registered with her the other day how close Valentina’s place was to her work. Juliana had probably passed by Valentina before many times on these very streets and had no clue. The idea seems so odd to her now.

“Are you sure this is ok?” Valentina asks, pulling Juliana from her thoughts. She reaches up and places her hand on Juliana’s forearm, encouraging her to stop biting at the nail on her thumb. It was a bad habit that Juliana couldn’t seem to kick when she got anxious.

“I’m worried that I’m forcing you to spend time with us when you’d probably rather just go,” Valentina continues.

Juliana stops, turning to look at Valentina directly. She can see the insecurity in her eyes and she smiles reassuringly in response.

“I promise you’re not forcing me,” Juliana states. “I want to be here. It’s just been a weird week for me.”

“I know what you mean,” Valentina says on a breath.

“I think this might be good, though. Help me get out of my head.”

Valentina simply nods in understanding. She slides her hand down to take Juliana’s. Then she tugs Juliana behind her, taking large steps to catch up with the other two. Juliana grips tighter and does her best to keep up.

~~~

The sequential beeping of the oven timer being set causes Juliana to look up from the tray she’s currently holding. She’s carefully gripping onto the edge with an oven mitt in an attempt to remove the freshly baked cookies from the surface. Once she’s detached them, she places the cookies on the cooling rack in front of her and takes the baking sheet over to the sink.

“Ok. These are the last two dozen,” Renata states, as she slides two other trays into the oven.

“That’s it?” Valentina asks, pushing back some stray strands of hair that cling to the sweat on her forehead.

“Yeah. This is twenty-four,” Renata explains. She turns around and eyes the field of already baked ones that cover the kitchen island. She begins counting under her breath, as she points at the groupings. “There’s forty-eight… sixty… seventy-two total over there, which will give us the ninety-six once these are done.”

“What about all the ones we’ve already eaten?” Valentina asks, leaning back against the sink.

After a couple of ingredient related debacles, Valentina had been assigned to washing the dishes. Renata smiles at her, with a smirk on her face.

“I’ve already accounted for those in my calculations.”

“Alright, nerd,” Valentina replies playfully. She rolls her shoulders and then turns her head to her left to look at an approaching Juliana.

Juliana reaches behind Valentina and places the dirty tray she was holding into the soapy water.

“You know,” Juliana says with a sigh. “Chocolate chip cookies are my favorite but I think I’ve officially OD’d today.”

Valentina smiles at her comment and then scans the counter, plucking a chocolate chip from the glass bowl. She extends it towards Juliana’s lips.

“You sure you don’t want one more?”

Juliana narrows her eyes at Valentina. She can see the devilish look on the other woman’s face, but she maintains her stance and tightens her lips.

“Come on,” Valentina croons, pushing it closer to Juliana’s mouth.

Juliana steps back in an attempt to escape, but finds herself pinned against the counter. She moves her head from side to side avoiding the advancing chocolate chip in Valentina’s fingers. Her resolve finally breaks and she lets out a laugh, playfully pushing at Valentina’s hands.

“Food’s here!” Guille yells from the front foyer, drawing the group’s attention in that direction.

Valentina freezes in place and looks over towards the door. Juliana takes the opportunity to let her gaze settle on Valentina’s face. It reminds her of sitting next to the other woman in the club the other night before she knew anything about her. Her booze-influenced brain was free to absorb the beautiful lips and high cheek bones without feeling self conscious about her attention. She recalls bravely stealing the glass from Valentina’s hand and how bold she felt in that moment.

Juliana feels compelled to move forward and she wraps her lips around the tips of Valentina’s fingers, sucking the chocolate chip into her mouth. As she backs away, she watches the other woman’s eyes slowly return to her own. The desire is already written clearly on her face. Valentina bites at her own bottom lip, as her gaze drifts down to Juliana’s mouth.

“I think we may have ordered too much,” Guille states, as he walks past them carrying multiple bags towards the table.

Valentina swallows thickly and pushes off from the island counter. She walks a few steps away and then turns back.

“Does everyone want wine?” she asks, pulling a bottle from the rack.

She gets sounds of affirmation from her brother and Renata already sitting at the table.

“I’m good with water,” Juliana answers softly. Valentina raises her eyebrow in question. “I’m usually not much of a drinker,” she explains. “Can I grab us some plates?”

Valentina nods and points up towards the cabinet that they’re in. Juliana reaches up, opening the door and pulls them down. She waits for Valentina to finish filling the wine glasses, and then they walk over to the table together.

The group settles in, opening up the carryout containers and loading their plates. It turns out that baking that many cookies was a little more labor intensive than expected, and they had worked up quite the appetite. They mostly sat eating in silence until everyone could feel their batteries recharge from the sudden influx of calories. As everyone’s energy rose, the conversation had started to naturally flow, again. Juliana enjoyed listening to the three of them talk. It made her realize how long it had been since she had a family dinner of her own.

“Juliana, your secret is out,” Guille comments, drawing her back into the conversation.

“You’re much more useful than Vale’s other friends. She’s not going to be able to keep you hidden away.”

“Thanks?” Juliana replies, with a raise in her voice and a small laugh.

“The jokes on you,” Valentina states, taking a bite of her food. “Juls is not from here, so she’s not going to be around to be at your disposal.” Valentina takes a sip of her wine to wash down her food, and then she turns to make eye contact with her friend. “I actually wasn’t sure I’d ever see you, again.”

There’s a certain sadness layered in Valentina’s voice and it causes Juliana’s expression to drop. She licks at her lips, as she eyes the other woman.

“You don’t live here?” Guille asks, pulling her attention away.

“No. I do,” she replies quickly. She sees the confusion on everyone’s faces. “I mean, I’m not from here. I moved here a little over four months ago for a job. If that works out, I might stay. I just don’t know right now if it’s permanent. But my immediate family lives in Texas.”

“Oh,” Valentina comments. Her voice is soft. “I didn’t know that.”

“Well, we didn’t do a lot of talking,” Juliana states quietly, with a smirk.

Guille’s sudden choking cough turns everyone’s attention towards him. Renata rubs at his back, as he picks up his wine glass from the table and takes a sip. Juliana can see Renata attempting to suppress a laugh as she watches him.

“Why don’t you help me box up these cookies, honey? We’ve got to get out of here soon,” she says.

Guille takes one last, quick bite of his food and then stands up from the table. They both make their way back into the kitchen. Valentina and Juliana watch them and share a knowing smile. Valentina leans forward, collecting the empty plates from the table and stacking them.

~~~

Juliana approaches the foyer from the kitchen, carrying a stack of boxes in her arms. Her view is blocked by a narrow wall that mostly serves as a division for the room from the front door area. She can hear the whispering voices as she gets closer.

“You could have told me that she was the one—“

“I thought you would have put the pieces together when she mentioned the night club.”

“I didn’t—“

The conversation suddenly stops as Juliana rounds the corner into the foyer. Her eyes bounce between Valentina and her brother, as they offer her somewhat forced smiles. She hesitates for a moment and then hands the boxes of cookies to Guille.

“Renata will be here in a second. She just needed to run to the bathroom first,” Juliana states.

“Cool,” Guille replies awkwardly, rocking back on his heels. He pauses looking at his sister and then back at Juliana. “It was very nice to meet you.”

“You, too.”

“Agreed,” Renata says, coming up behind her. “Thanks for your help today. We hope to see more of you.”

Juliana turns around and they share a brief hug. She turns back towards the siblings, and Guille gives her a nod. With his hands full, it’s challenging for him to offer a hug as well so he just smiles warmly.

“Let me know how the event goes,” Valentina says, as she hugs Renata.

“Of course,” she replies, as the couple steps out the door.

The women wave, as they watch them make their way to the elevator. Valentina then slowly closes the front door and turns around facing Juliana. She leans back against it. A moment of silence falls between them as they stare at each other.

“So…” Valentina says, letting out a long breath.

“So,” Juliana replies. She turns her head towards the inside of the apartment and then back to Valentina. “We should probably talk.”

Valentina nods with a closed-mouth smile, as she pushes away from the door.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Juliana and I both had quite the week. Hers was decidedly more exciting than mine, but there's been a lot going on. I haven't had time to respond to all the wonderful comments yet, but I've read them! Y'all continue to be awesome. Hope you enjoyed this latest update :)


	7. Chapter 7

Juliana sighs softly as Valentina’s mouth covers her own. The other woman kisses her lazily, as her thumb softly circles the nape of her neck.

They were supposed to be talking. After Valentina’s brother and his fiancé’s exit, the two women had settled on the couch with every intention of sorting out how things had been left between them the previous weekend. But only a few words were exchanged before the temptation of being alone in such close proximity took over. They were equally to blame for the shift in focus.

The steady sound of rainfall cloaks the outside of the high-rise apartment. Juliana wasn’t sure when it had started, but she hoped that the freshly baked cookies were safe from the sudden downpour. The rain was one of the things that surprised Juliana about Mexico City. She had always pictured the place as some sort of sprawling metropolis amidst a flat desert landscape. The fact that the elevation rose above seven thousand feet and, as a result, unpredictable mountain rainstorms frequently floated through didn’t match her preconceived notions of the city.

The repetition of the drops against the glass and the rhythm of Valentina’s lips massaging against her own was enough to lure Juliana into a very pleasant trance. Nothing felt more important than Valentina’s kisses. But as easy as it was to just disappear in them, Juliana couldn’t shake this lingering poking of her brain to explain herself.

She takes the quick pause in the action to back away and put a little distance between them. Juliana raises her hand to her chest and sits back in an attempt to settle herself. Valentina acknowledges the purposeful separation and reaches over picking up her wine glass from the coffee table. Her eyes never leave Juliana as she takes a sip. Juliana opens and closes her mouth a couple times, unsuccessfully attempting to start the conversation.

“What are you thinking about?” Valentina questions softly, hoping the prompting will help.

Juliana takes a deep breath—holding it in as she considers her next words.

“So you told your brother about us?” she asks, releasing the breath. That wasn’t at all what she intended to say.

Its Valentina’s turn to hesitate. She looks down at her hands and then back up.

“I’m not very good at hiding my feelings,” she states. “Especially from him because he knows me so well.”

Juliana nods in understanding.

“I was pretty upset when I showed up to lunch on Saturday. I may have let it slip that I slept with someone and they took off the next morning,” Valentina explains.

If Juliana hadn’t already felt like a jerk, she most certainly would now. She didn’t know what to expect that morning. Her head was such a mess, and she just needed to escape. That was always her first instinct. She was a runner.

“I’m so sorry,” Juliana offers. “I—“

Valentina reaches out placing her hands on Juliana’s, stopping her words.

“You don’t owe me anything,” Valentina says, dipping her head to make eye contact. “We were drinking, and I practically jumped you. You wake up in a strange place. If I was in your position, I probably would have taken off, too.”

Juliana intertwines their fingers on their joined hands and pulls them into her lap.

“I tried to give you all these chances to wake up and stop me,” she says, softly. “But I kind of felt like the universe was making the decision for me. I just didn’t want you to feel rejected. That was never my intention.”

Valentina raises up her other hand and cups Juliana’s cheek. Her hand slips down to her jaw, and she caresses it with her thumb.

“I don’t feel rejected now,” Valentina whispers.

She leans in rejoining their lips and lets her hand move to the side of Juliana’s neck. Valentina moves her body forward, guiding Juliana down against the couch.

Making out with Valentina sober was quite different than making out with her drunk. It was still sensual and intoxicating, but not nearly as rushed. There was nothing wrong with what happened between them the other night. They both got exactly what they wanted. Juliana needed to fuck Valentina. And, she needed to be fucked by Valentina. That mission was most certainly accomplished. But, now what she needed was to be pushed into the plush cushions of an oversized couch by the beautiful, soft, alluring woman.

Valentina’s weight settles into her, pinning her down while slow, deep kisses tug at her lips. Their occasional whimpers of pleasure and the patter of rain drops against the window are the only sounds in the low lit room. The sun was just starting to dip below the horizon and what was left of the daylight was obscured by the overcast sky.

Valentina adjust above her, bringing their lower bodies closer together. Her thigh is nestled tightly between Juliana’s legs. Valentina’s skin feels hot beneath her fingertips. Juliana glides her hands under Valentina’s shirt, tracing the flexing muscles of her upper back. Their movement gives way to the friction of the gentle, yet deliberate grinding of their hips.

“Let’s go to the bedroom,” Valentina whispers, between wet kisses. Her tongue traces under Juliana’s top lip, before dipping deeper into her mouth and sliding out. “I want to go down on you.”

Juliana hums pleasantly against her. She smiles into their kiss. “Is that something you like to do?”

It takes a second for the words to register, as Valentina lays soft kisses on Juliana’s chin.

“Isn’t that something you want me to do?” Valentina questions back. Her warm breath moving across the expanse of neck in front of her. She feels Juliana swallow deeply.

“I don’t know,” she answers honestly.

Valentina pulls back so she can look her in the eyes. Juliana’s knitted eyebrows and unsure expression contrasts against her steadfast disposition. As she takes in the look on her face, Valentina’s confidence starts slipping. Juliana can see the myriad of emotions dance across the other woman’s eyes.

“After we were together, I did some light Googling,” Valentina admits shyly.

Juliana’s eyebrows raise slightly in response.

“I wasn’t sure if I had given you everything you liked. I’m not— I hadn’t been with a woman before.”

“Me either,” Juliana whispers.

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“I thought—“ Valentina starts and then pauses. “You weren’t specific about your ex.”

“You thought I was gay?” Juliana asks, the surprise evident in her voice.

Valentina opens her mouth to respond, but only manages a small shrug of her shoulders. Everything about her expression indicates that she felt it was a perfectly reasonable assumption considering. Given their time together, Juliana couldn’t really string together much of a defense that she had led her to believe otherwise.

“I hadn’t really thought about it. I just knew— I just know that I’m very attracted to you.”

Valentina’s face lights up at Juliana’s admission. The seconds stretch between them, as their eyes lock onto each others.

“Good thing my offer still stands,” Valentina finally replies, a small smirk forming on her lips.

Juliana’s gaze slips down to the other woman’s mouth. She reflects her smile and gives her a small nod.

Valentina gets up from the couch. She holds out her palm, offering her hand to Juliana.

~~~

Juliana pushes at the buttons on her shirt, sliding them through the slots to fasten them as she works her way up. The room is still quite dark, except for a small bedside lamp she had switched on to find her clothes. It was just a little after 4:30 in the morning. If she had any chance of getting back home, getting ready, and getting to work on time, she had to be up and moving at this ungodly hour.

“Nooo.”

Juliana pauses at the voice. She’s not entirely sure if she really heard it or not. She looks back over her shoulder to see a sleeping Valentina with her hand extended across the mattress in her direction.

“You’re not doing this to me, again,” Valentina groggily states, with her eyes still closed.

A moment passes and then Valentina opens one of them slowly. Juliana shakes her head with a smirk.

“I was going to leave a note,” Juliana replies, as she sits down on the edge of the bed.

“A note?” Valentina questions. “With what?”

Juliana glances around the room looking for anything she could leverage. There weren’t really any options.

“Maybe I could have just spelled it out on the kitchen counter with some chocolate chips.”

Valentina laughs softly. She rubs at her face as she moves to sit up.

“Why are you up so early?”

“I’ve got to get to work,” Juliana explains.

“Right now?” Valentina asks.

“No. Right now, I’m headed to my apartment for a shower and a change of clothes.”

“Don’t you work right around the corner from here?”

Juliana nods.

“Why don’t you just stay here then? You can borrow some of my clothes. We can sleep in a little,” Valentina suggests. She runs her hand across Juliana’s bare thigh, her fingertips sliding easily across the smooth expanse of skin.

“I can’t trouble you like that,” Juliana counters.

“Yes, you can.”

Valentina leans in and lays a soft, warm kiss against Juliana’s lips. Juliana smiles into the kiss.

“Come on,” Valentina pleads, as she scoots closer and deepens the embrace. Her hands move up to Juliana’s shirt and she pushes at the sides.

“Take this off,” she whispers.

Juliana lets out a small sigh, as she starts to reverse all the work she just completed. She doesn’t do it begrudgingly, though. Its for a very worthy cause. About halfway down the unbuttoning of her long sleeve shirt, the other woman reaches out and stills her hands.

“I changed my mind,” Valentina says. “Leave this on.”

Juliana laughs lightly in response. Valentina reaches into her shirt, cupping her bare breast as her thumb swipes across Juliana’s nipple.

“No bra?” Valentina asks, between kisses.

“I didn’t feel like putting it on for just the trip home,” Juliana explains, her breathing starting to become labored as she melts into Valentina’s hands. She had only gotten as far as putting on her shirt and underwear this morning before the other woman had woken up and distracted her.

Valentina pulls at the remaining buttons on the shirt. They pop open slowly one by one, as the women’s tongues roll against each others in their open embrace. Her warm hand slides down, gripping her hip. She encourages Juliana to move closer to the center of the bed and lay down. As Juliana’s back hits the mattress, she feels Valentina’s mouth move down to her chest leaving a trail of kisses along the center of her torso.

When Valentina’s lips reach the top band of her panties, she feels the other woman let out a breath.

“These,” Valentina says, gripping the sides of her underwear. “Have to go.”

She quickly slides them down Juliana’s legs and tosses them aside. She settles back into her original position, tenderly kissing the insides of Juliana’s thighs. The exploration lasts just long enough to get Juliana squirming. Before she can voice her impatience, Valentina leans in running her tongue along the length of her wet center. Juliana lets out a long moan in response.

Juliana had experienced this before. Her ex-boyfriend had done it a couple times in preparation for other activities. Where it had previously served as a fairly unmemorable warm up to other things, it was quickly becoming a desired favorite.

Valentina had stayed true to her word last night. She had gone down on Juliana for a very dedicated period of time. Things had started off similar to her other experiences. The physical sensations were familiar until they suddenly weren’t. She wasn’t sure if it was a change in pressure or stroke or intensity, but Juliana was powerless to do anything but writhe under Valentina’s attention. Maybe it was just the change in partner.

“God. You taste so good,” Valentina comments, pulling her mouth away for a moment.

Juliana’s hand slips down to bury in the other woman’s hair. Her deep breaths causing her chest and stomach to rise and fall as she stares at Valentina.

She reaches down encouraging Valentina to come up. Valentina crawls slowly, settling directly on top of Juliana and kisses her deeply. Juliana’s heady taste hangs heavy on Valentina’s tongue. Juliana sucks it into her mouth and slides her hands down. She slips one hand in the small amount of space between them and directly between Valentina’s legs. The abundant wetness Juliana finds there makes her head spin. Valentina certainly wasn’t lying about enjoying her.

“In a minute,” Valentina whispers, pulling away from Juliana’s touch. Juliana whines in protest.

Valentina quickly slides back down and latches her mouth onto Juliana’s center. She pushes at the undersides of Juliana’s thighs encouraging them up, so she can slide in closer to her body. Valentina cups Juliana’s ass, as she draws herself in tighter. Juliana’s feet sit flat against Valentina’s back, with her thighs over the other woman’s shoulders. Valentina moves her mouth and her neck to set a rolling rhythm, pulsing her chin into Juliana’s center as she uses her grip on her backside to pull her forward in time.

Juliana cries out, as she begins rubbing the soles of her feet against Valentina’s back. She can no longer restrain her motion and she starts grinding herself against the other woman’s face.

Valentina adjusts her position, focusing her mouth’s efforts on Juliana’s most sensitive spot. She moves her hand up, sliding two fingers easily inside of Juliana as the roll of her hips continues.

Juliana is close. Valentina can feel it building in the tightening of her walls and the change in texture of her wetness.

She whimpers and blindly reaches out for purchase. Her hands landing on the sheets below her. Juliana grips them in a feeble attempt to ground herself. She’s scared to grab onto Valentina’s head in this moment. She doesn’t want to pull her hair too hard or do anything to mess up this deliciously perfect angle.

The passing thought that Juliana should probably be mildly embarrassed by the high pitched whines escaping from her throat and reverberating off the walls runs through her brain. But she’s too far gone, now. Everything is desperate and heated, and she gives in to her release.

Valentina hooks her arm around of the outside of her thigh, holding her in place as she continues her ministrations through Juliana’s climax. She doesn’t stop until she feels Juliana’s taught body collapse underneath her.

Satiated and spent, Juliana runs her hands over her face and up through her hair.

Her unfocused eyes gaze up at the ceiling, while Valentina untangles their position and moves up to lay next to her. She wipes at her mouth and settles in, resting her head on Juliana’s chest. Juliana lets one hand drop down, and she winds her fingers into Valentina’s thick hair. She massages the back of her head slowly with the only energy she can muster from head to toe.

Their breathing falls in sync as they both slowly come down from the high.

Juliana blinks rapidly, opening her eyes. It hadn’t registered with her that she had even fallen asleep. But gaging by the amount of daylight now filtering into the room, it was definitely later. Juliana’s hand is still in Valentina’s hair. The other woman is sleeping soundly on her chest. She feels Valentina’s soft breaths against her skin. She begins massaging her scalp again and feels the other woman start to stir. They lay in silence for a moment, and then Valentina stretches in place shifting her head to look up at Juliana.

“Hey,” Juliana whispers.

“Hey,” Valentina replies.

“It got late.”

The other woman simply nods at her observation.

“If you want to take a shower, feel free. There should be clean towels on the rack,” Valentina offers.

“Thanks,” Juliana replies. Her words are just barely above a whisper, as she continues to run her fingers through Valentina’s hair.

A singular thought forms in Juliana’s head, and she feels her pulse suddenly race at the prospect of verbalizing it. The quiet of the room is doing nothing to distract her as it circles in her brain. If Juliana was going to take Valentina’s refusal to wake up last time as a sign from the universe, then she had to accept this one as well. She swallows nervously and lets out a small breath.

“Val,” she states simply. Valentina looks up at her, again. Her sleepy expression making her appear younger. “Would you like to have dinner with me this weekend?”

Valentina’s prolonged silence starts to fill Juliana with feelings of regret for asking the question. Valentina’s eyes look distant.

“Yes,” she finally replies. “No. Fuck. I can’t. I’m going to be out of town for two weeks.”

The sound of a ringing phone blares out in the quiet of the room. Valentina turns away, grabbing her cell phone off the nightstand. She rolls her eyes with a groan and sits up in bed.

“I’ve got to take this,” she says over her shoulder, as she stands up.

Juliana watches Valentina walk over and pull down a silk robe that was hanging on the back of her bedroom door. Valentina slides into it quickly, as she answers the phone and walks out of the room.

~~~

Juliana emerges from the shower to find a few wardrobe options waiting for her on the bed. Valentina is still gone, but she can smell the coffee brewing and hear her muffled voice from the kitchen. Her best guess is that she’s on some work related call. She quickly chooses a pair of pants and a shirt from the offered selection.

When she picks them up from the bed, she spots the underwear left for her, as well. Juliana blushes at the thought of wearing Valentina’s panties. It feels overwhelmingly intimate. Yet, by comparison to the things they had done to each other in the last twenty-four hours alone, it probably shouldn’t. Juliana gets dressed, collects her belongings and moves to join the other woman in the kitchen.

Valentina is sitting on one of the barstools that lines the side of the kitchen island facing the living room. Her hair is pulled up into a messy bun on top of her head and she’s still wearing the robe. She’s sipping at a cup of coffee and listening diligently. When she spots Juliana, she gives her a small smile as she scans her outfit. She covers the mouthpiece of the phone and lightly whistles in approval. Juliana smiles shyly in response.

“Do you have a bag I can put my clothes in?” Juliana asks quietly, hoping to not disturb her call.

Valentina stands up and walks over to the pantry beside the refrigerator. She returns, handing Juliana a cloth grocery bag. Then Valentina starts to speak. She’s responding to a question from the call. Her voice sounds just a tiny bit lower and more authoritative than Juliana is used to.

She watches Valentina walk over to the cabinet and pull down a travel mug. Valentina fills it from the fresh pot sitting on the coffee maker. She continues talking on the phone, as she approaches Juliana and places the mug in her hands.

“So that’s the thing,” Valentina says, turning abruptly away and propping her hand on her hip.

Juliana watches her for a moment and purses her lips. She really does need to get going, or she’ll be late. She waits awkwardly for a moment. When Valentina finally turns back around, Juliana motions that she’s going to head out. The other woman nods curtly in response.

She’s nearly to the front door, when Juliana feels a firm hand on her shoulder. She turns back quickly and finds herself being pressed against the front door. Valentina uses her hips to pin her against the smooth surface. Juliana feels Valentina’s soft full lips push into hers. The kiss isn’t particularly deep or wet, but it is quite firm and Juliana feels herself molding into all the points in which her and Valentina connect.

Juliana was pretty well convinced that if she had made it to the ripe old age of twenty-three without experiencing a kiss that made her weak in the knees that it was most likely just one of those fake Hollywood constructs. She had experienced loving kisses, as well as sensual ones, erotic and exciting ones that made her heart beat faster. But until this very moment, she had never had her limbs fail her. She felt a little ridiculous swooning so hard at such a simple embrace. But try as she might, there was no denying that Valentina’s unexpected kiss nearly sent her tumbling to the floor.

Juliana clutches tightly to the coffee mug in her hand, as though her grip on it is the only thing keeping her upright. Valentina draws back slowly. Juliana lets out a deep breath through her nose, as her eyes flutter open. She feels something being placed in her palm. When their eyes meet, Valentina’s lips curve up into a small smile.

“Text me,” she mouths quickly and then returns to her call.

Juliana looks down to see a torn off piece of the receipt from last night’s dinner in her hand. Valentina’s number is written on the back. She slides it quickly into her pocket. Once Juliana feels confident that she can walk without falling over, she reaches behind her to grab onto the door handle. She watches Valentina retreat back into her living room, offering a small wave goodbye. Juliana exits the apartment unable to repress the large smile on her face.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was one of those rare chapters that does you the favor of pretty much writing itself. So, shoutout to my subconscious for that help. Fingers crossed that it delivered. Hope you enjoyed!


	8. Chapter 8

The pulsing, buzzing sound against the wood surface of Juliana’s nightstand slowly pulls her from her sleep. Disoriented, she reaches out blindly attempting to locate the offending noise. She can’t recall exactly what she was in the middle of dreaming, but the feeling of it is still warm in her veins. There were specific sensations of expectation and excitement—a certain buzz of anticipation. Now, it’s just the literal buzz of her phone that fills her brain.

Juliana grabs it from the table and pulls it to her face, attempting to understand who was calling her at this early morning hour. She struggles to get her eyes to focus and blinks in effort. Through squinted vision, she’s able to make out the word “Valentina” and a surge of adrenaline causes Juliana to feel suddenly very awake. She presses the green button with her thumb and pulls the phone up to her ear.

“Hey. Is everything ok?”

Her voice sounds much more graveled than she expects. Juliana rolls to her back, running her hand up through her hair while she waits for an answer. She can hear some sort of motion on the other side. There are muffled voices of people speaking and then the soft beep of a car horn in the distance.

“Hey,” Valentina finally replies. “Sorry. The waiter came up right when you answered.”

Juliana lowers the phone to glance at the time and then returns it to her ear. It’s nearly noon in Barcelona, where Valentina has been for the past week. They had been texting back and forth but were struggling to find any decent time to chat. It had mostly resulted in a few solid conversations that were spread out over days. Juliana had been waiting for the right moment to request a phone call but still felt nervous about the idea of it being too forward.

“You still there?” Valentina asks.

“Yes,” Juliana responds quickly. She lets out a breath. “I’m here.”

“Oh my god. It’s like… 4:45 there. I wasn’t thinking,” Valentina states, sounding exasperated. “Go back to sleep.”

“Val,” Juliana draws out. “It’s not like I haven’t woken you up at the same time before. I’m fine. I’m good. What’s going on?”

The line is silent for a moment, and then she hears Valentina quickly breathe in.

“I’m just stressed,” she admits. “And, a little turned on. Your sleepy voice is very sexy.”

Juliana smiles in response. “Can you hear me rolling my eyes from 6,000 miles away?”

Valentina laughs lightly. “I’ll have to take your word for it.”

“Why are you stressed?” Juliana asks.

“Just had a frustrating meeting this morning. I had to get out of there. It was the perfect time for brunch anyway,” the other woman explains. “I was finishing up my meal when I realized I really wanted to hear your voice.”

“My very sexy voice?” Juliana questions, playing up the rough, sleepy quality.

“Stop it,” Valentina calls out. “Or, at least wait until I get back to my hotel room.”

Juliana laughs soundly, and she swears she can feel the other woman smile.

“Can I interest you in joining me for a walk?” Valentina asks.

_You can interest me in anything._ The thought dances across Juliana’s mind, but she simply answers, “of course.”

Her phone beeps twice and Juliana looks at the screen. Valentina is requesting to change their call to a FaceTime. Her heart beats a little faster at the prospect of seeing the other woman, not just hearing her voice. Juliana suddenly feels a little self conscious at her ‘just woken up’ state, but she can’t pass up this opportunity to spend time with Valentina. She shakes her head dismissively at her anxiety and accepts the request.

The screen flickers and then Valentina comes into view. There’s no stopping the smile that takes over Juliana’s face at the sight.

Valentina moves a little closer to the screen. “It’s so dark. I can’t even see you,” she states.

Juliana moves to sit up in bed and leans over to turn on her lamp.

“I probably look insane,” she comments, as she shifts back and runs her hand across her face.

Juliana is concerned for a moment that the feed has frozen. Valentina is just staring at her with a smirk. Only when the other woman’s mouth moves to bite at her bottom lip, does Juliana realize there’s no delay.

“You look good,” Valentina replies. “Your hair is a little wild, but I like it.”

Juliana’s cheeks warm in response, and she brushes her fingers through it in an attempt to comb it down.

“So it was a rough morning at work?”

Valentina had described her job to Juliana the other day. She wasn’t as familiar with this line of business, but she understood enough to follow along. The other woman had explained that she works for her family business. Her father owns a group of media companies that were expanding into the region. Valentina’s in the business development division, and she’s traveling with her father and a few other colleagues to begin nailing down contractual details of the expansion. It all sounded exciting and potentially tedious.

“It was just unnecessary drama,” Valentina states. “This is not the first time we’ve done this, but you’d think it was with how they’re all acting. Everyone has ideas; no one has details. There are all these local regulations that have to be incorporated, but no one seems to know exactly what they are. This trip just seems a little premature, to be honest.”

“Ah. I see,” Juliana responds. “What does your father think?”

Valentina shakes her head, looking up in annoyance.

“He says that these things are just messy, and I have to accept that fact. Which I get. I really do. I just—I don’t think it has to be this messy. Maybe, I’m just being too much of a control freak. I don’t know where I could have gotten that from,” Valentina finishes facetiously. Her breathing has become a little stuttered as she walks quickly down the street, sliding past other pedestrians. “But I don’t want to spend my time with you whining about work.”

Valentina focuses on the phone, again. Their eyes connect through the small screen and she pauses. Juliana subconsciously licks at her lips.

“Maybe you could answer a question for me?” she asks.

Valentina nods for her to continue.

“Where are you? Like, a second ago you were walking down a city street and now you look like you’re in the middle of a jungle.”

The other woman’s mouth extends into a full smile.

“That’s another thing,” Valentina comments. “We’re staying down by the Marina, because my stupid colleague was trying to impress my dad with booking some trendy, exclusive hotel. I mean, it’s a beautiful area but unnecessary.”

Valentina shakes her head, as she continues walking.

“Right now, I’m cutting through the Parc de la Ciutadella on my way back to the hotel,” she says. “You’ve got to see this.” Valentina switches to the back camera on her phone so Juliana can look at what she’s looking at.

The angle is pointing down a little and Juliana takes in the sight of a blue-green pool of water. As the camera gradually moves up, she sees a waterfall come into view. It’s manmade and cascading several stories down from a lifted walkway flanked by a series of stone arches. The whole structure is adorned with statues, including some gold covered ones near the top that glare in the midday sun.

“Ok. No more complaining about your location,” Juliana states flatly. “This is incredible.”

“I’ve seen it a few times before, but its particularly stunning today,” Valentina responds. “Maybe it’s just a reflection of my current company.”

Juliana’s eyes dance around the screen. Except for all the people, the place looks like something out of a storybook. The stairs ascend on either side of the monument high up into a covered structure. It all appears to be hidden inside the depths of a forrest, with large trees and thick shrubbery surrounding it.

“If you’re talking about that guy in the corner that looks like he’s selling coconuts out of a used cooler, then I have to agree.”

Valentina switches to the front-facing camera just in time for Juliana to see her rolling her eyes playfully in response.

“No. It’s gorgeous, Val,” Juliana says softly.

Valentina continues walking, her attention bouncing from the phone to the path in front of her as she makes her way through the crowd of people. Its a fairly busy Saturday in the park. Juliana imagines the area probably gets quite touristy.

“I think the zoo is up this way, too,” Valentina comments. Her eyes shift back to the screen and lock onto Juliana’s.

Juliana brings her hand up to the side of her face, resting her chin in her palm. Her lips twitch into a small smile. Her vision is sharp, but her eyes feel unfocused as she finds herself wrapped up in staring at Valentina. She wishes she could reach out and hold the other woman’s hand. She can so clearly picture her warm palm sliding against her own, and it calms her.

“I’m enjoying my current view,” Juliana offers.

Valentina slows her steps, nearly stopping at the words. She turns her head a little and bites at her inner cheek. The slightest blush adorns her chest. She brings the phone a little closer and opens her mouth to respond.

“Valentina!” a voice calls out near her.

She looks up, scanning the area. The phone gets pulled to Valentina’s chest and a close up of her shirt fills Juliana’s screen. She can only hear the conversation, but can’t see the owner of the voice.

“Oh, hi!” she hears Valentina say excitedly.

“I didn’t know you were in town,” a male voice states.

“Just a work trip,” Valentina responds. “How have you been?”

“Good. Better, now that I see you.”

There’s a momentary pause and then a sudden swell of jealousy fills Juliana’s chest. She feels silly, seeing that she has no context or view on what’s happening. She just recognizes the flirtatious tone in the man’s voice, and she can’t help the emotions it triggers. She hears Valentina’s voice, but Juliana can’t make out her response. It only serves to heighten the feeling.

“So when are you going to let me take you out?” the man asks. “You busy tonight?”

“I don’t know. I’m not sure what my schedule is tonight,” Valentina replies.

“I’ve got to run now, but I’ll call you later,” he says. His voice going up at the end, as though it’s up for debate.

“Ok.”

Valentina’s confirmation doesn’t indicate whether she’s interested in that or not. There’s a small scuff of the phone mic, which Juliana takes as a hug or some sort of physical contact. Then Valentina comes back into view, as she extends the device out from herself. Juliana blinks a couple times and swallows back the rise in her nerves.

“Sorry about that,” Valentina offers.

“No worries,” Juliana replies, her voice a little higher than normal. Her tone is more revealing than she’d prefer—giving away the fact that there are actually worries. “Who was that?” she asks casually, hoping that the question covers up her previous disposition.

“Just a friend of a friend,” Valentina replies. “I haven’t seen him in quite a while. I forgot his name, actually. I hope he didn’t notice.”

“From what I could tell, you covered well.”

Valentina lifts an eyebrow in response. Juliana can’t read whether Valentina’s nonplused expression is one of annoyance at her or the situation. It doesn’t last long, though. Her face shifts back to a more neutral state as she begins walking, continuing her way through the park. The midday sun is shaded by the large trees that line the path that she’s on. The only sounds Juliana hears are the crunch of Valentina’s boots and broken pieces of conversation from other people walking by.

Valentina has grown strangely quiet. There was something about the unexpected interruption that seems to have popped the little bubble they were previously floating around in. She looks a little lost in thought, and Juliana decides it best to just give her a moment.

The sunshine falls on Valentina’s face, as she emerges from the park and back onto what looks like more city streets. Juliana takes in a deep breath.

“So…” she says, letting the word linger on her tongue. “Are you going to invite me up to your fancy hotel room or what?”

Valentina smiles immediately in response.

“Almost there,” she says, her eyes connecting with Juliana’s, again.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The response to the last chapter was incredible, y'all. It made me seriously just want to quit while I was ahead. I was like *drop the mic* "I'm done. Everything after this will probably just be a disappointment." Haha. No. Seriously. It was fantastic to hear that y'all are enjoying this. I know some chapters are just special like that. Hopefully, I can keep that enjoyment going!
> 
> Also, I've had a few people ask about Valentina's POV. This story is only going to be told from Juliana's perspective. But I'm toying with the idea of writing a companion piece from Val's perspective. I wouldn't want to do a total rehash. More of a fill in the gaps of the same timeframe approach. Any interest in that type of thing?
> 
> You can also find me on tumblr @kristonica.


	9. Chapter 9

Juliana glances at her reflection in the mirror, trying her best to avoid acknowledging the look of giddiness on her face.

She had only hung up with Valentina a few minutes ago, and she was scrambling to get ready while she waited for the other woman to call her back. Juliana’s need for a bathroom break, combined with the fact that Valentina felt confident the call would drop in the elevator, afforded them a small hiatus. The agreement was that as soon as Valentina was settled in her hotel room they would resume their extended conversation.

Or, was it a date? She wasn’t sure exactly what they were doing. All she knew is she didn’t want it to end.

Juliana pushes her hair back from her face, swooping up loose tendrils, and tying it all up in a high ponytail. She turns on the sink, letting the water pool in her cupped hands before splashing it quickly on her face. She repeats that a couple times and then pats her skin dry with the towel hanging next to the counter.

She gets as far as squeezing toothpaste on her toothbrush and placing it in her mouth when she sees the FaceTime request light up her screen. She answers it promptly. It takes a second for the picture to settle and then she sees blue eyes staring back at her, once again. She watches Valentina smile brightly.

“Oh good! You’re brushing your teeth,” Valentina says, as she sets down her phone.

Juliana watches the other woman quickly pull her shirt up over her head. Her eyes widen a little in response.

“I didn’t know you were this into oral hygiene,” Juliana comments.

Valentina cuts her eyes towards the phone, as she shakes her head with a smirk.

“I meant ‘good you’re still busy for a minute.’ I didn’t want to keep you waiting, but I also wanted to change.”

“Oh, yeah. Do what you need to do,” Juliana replies.

Her phone is propped up on her sink counter, and Juliana begins brushing her teeth in earnest. Her eyes can’t help but drift back to the screen, though. Valentina is sitting on the edge of her hotel bed, bent over a little while she unzips her tall boots. She then stands and pulls at the zipper on the side of her skirt. It slides off of her hips and drops down out of frame. It’s now mostly just her upper legs and torso that are filling the lens. The image isn’t helping at all with Juliana’s weak attempt at not ogling the other woman.

When Valentina takes off her bra and tosses it to the side, Juliana completely abandons trying to perform basic human functions. She’s frozen watching the scene before her. Valentina walks to the foot of the bed and gathers a t-shirt and sweatpants from the dresser. Her long, thin arms easily slide into the shirt. She bends at the waist, as she pulls the loose pants up over her thighs.

Valentina returns to the phone, picking it up from the bedside table and bringing it to her face.

“Umm, Juls,” she says, pointing with her index finger up towards her mouth. “You’ve got some…”

Juliana is suddenly woken from her trance. She looks down seeing the toothpaste foam that had escaped her mouth and was now running down her chin.

“Oh god,” she mumbles around the toothbrush. She wipes at it and then moves over to the sink to rinse her mouth.

She hears Valentina laugh lightly in response.

Juliana picks up her phone from the counter and extends it out in front of her, as she makes her way from her bathroom to her modest kitchen. She had ended up in a little smaller apartment than she hoped when she first moved to the city. It had quickly become apparent to her that if she wanted something larger, she was going to need to find roommates. She could have stayed with her tia, but the commute to her job would have been too much. After living in a cramped one bedroom apartment with her mom for so long, the idea of living alone was just too enticing.

“So what are you up to today?” Valentina asks her.

“You’re pretty much looking at it,” Juliana answers, as she finds an acceptable place in her kitchen to prop up her phone.

She checks it a couple times to make sure its not going to fall over and that she’s actually in frame. Then she quickly grabs the kettle from the stove, refills it, and places it on the burner. As she reaches up into the cabinet for a mug, Juliana looks back towards the screen.

“It’s the weekend,” the other woman states. “You’re not hanging out with friends or your cousin?”

Juliana lets out a small huff, as she settles her hip against the counter.

“That would imply that I have friends.”

“I don’t understand why not,” Valentina replies. “You’re not a difficult person to get along with.”

Juliana looks down shyly, suddenly feeling the need to busy her hands. She moves to pull a couple pieces of bread from the bag on the counter.

“It’s not that,” she explains. “I just haven’t been here very long. The people I’ve met seem to already have their lives in order: their friends, their boyfriends, their family. It’s hard to just step into something that is already in progress. I don’t want to be this new thing people have to make space for.”

Juliana says the final sentence as she drops the slices into the toaster and pushes the button down. She moves closer to the phone and the women stare at each other for a moment. She can see Valentina studying her. She’s terrified that a look of sympathy will cross the other woman’s face, but Valentina just looks curious.

“What about your ex?” she asks, thoughtfully.

The kettle starts to whistle and Juliana is thankful for the distraction. She turns the burner off and moves to open a drawer. She plucks out a tea bag and drops it into the mug she retrieved earlier. As she begins pouring the hot water, she lets out a sigh.

“He was kind of the only friend I had made,” she finally answers. “He’s a friend of one of my coworkers. I had gone out after work one night with them, and we started talking. It was nice, you know, to just feel like I was connecting with someone. After we started hanging out, it became clear that he wanted more. I wasn’t opposed to the idea, so…”

Juliana shrugs her shoulders, as she pulls the hot drink up to her lips. She blows over the surface looking back at Valentina.

“How romantic,” Valentina says with a smirk. The teasing glint in her eyes obvious even through the small screen.

“Ha. Ha,” she responds sarcastically. “No. It wasn’t an epic love story. But, it still sucked when he dumped me out of nowhere.”

Juliana places the mug back down on the counter and takes a few steps backwards towards her refrigerator. She opens it and pulls out the butter and jam.

“How long had you been together?”

“A couple of months.”

“And, his grounds for making such a foolish decision?” Valentina questions.

The sentiment warms Juliana’s chest. She moves closer to the phone and eyes the other woman. 

“I think the exact quote was, ‘Juliana, I really care about you, but I don’t want to hold you back. I want you to be free to see other people.’”

“You’re kidding me?”

“Unfortunately, not,” Juliana replies with a wince. She grabs the bread from the toaster and places them on a plate. She diligently focuses on the task of buttering the toast, as she continues. “He already had some other people lined up that he wanted to see as soon as he set me free.”

Valentina raises an eyebrow in response. Juliana glances at the screen for a second while she finishes spreading on the jam.

“He was always very social,” Juliana quips and then takes a solid bite of her toast.

A small laugh escapes Valentina’s lips, as she takes in Juliana’s display. The snap of her bite and the crunch of her jaw serve as a demonstration of her emotional response. Juliana’s look of annoyance melts away when she hears the laugh. A shy smile adorns her face as she finishes chewing on the piece of toast. She licks at the small line of jam that clings to her top lip. Juliana picks up the phone with her free hand and brings it closer. She watches Valentina’s gaze bounce from her eyes to her mouth.

“So, are you heartbroken or angry—or both?” the other woman asks.

Juliana shakes her head and then pauses. She states simply, “I just miss my friend.”

A light knock on Valentina’s hotel room door draws their attention away from each other. Juliana hears someone faintly call out, “room service.” She stays silent, as Valentina walks over and opens the door. A young man wheels in a cart, and she directs him over to a small dining table. He sets out her dish and then makes his exit. As soon as the door closes, Juliana can no longer contain her question.

“Didn’t you just have brunch?”

“That was like an hour ago,” Valentina replies, nonchalantly. “Plus, it was just eggs florentine. I needed something more hearty.”

Valentina lifts up the dish cover and points her phone camera down towards the plate.

“Pancakes?” Juliana questions.

“I don’t know why, but talking to you made me crave them,” she answers. “Maybe because they’re sweet and soft.”

“And fit in your mouth?”

Valentina forgoes a verbal response and just purses her lips as she reaches for the syrup, pouring a little on. From the angle, Juliana can’t tell if she’s blushing but her expression seems to indicate so. Her eyes shift up from her plate to stare at Juliana. She cuts a piece of the pancake with the edge of her fork and takes a quick bite.

“The whole friendship thing is hard,” she states flatly.

Juliana watches Valentina’s head tilt back, as she looks up in thought.

“Like, Lucho. We’ve been broken up for over a year now, but I still let him hang around.” Valentina takes another bite. “Most of the time it’s ok. But when he drinks, I think he forgets that we’re not together anymore. I probably should just stop inviting him places. But we were all best friends for years—me, Sergio and him. It seems extra cruel to cut him off completely.”

Juliana considers Valentina’s words, as they both chew on their respective carbs. She can only think of one question.

“Were you in love with him?”

“No,” Valentina answers quietly, looking down at her plate. She pushes at her pancake with her fork. Juliana thinks she almost looks ashamed or apologetic about her answer. “I mean, I care about him,” she continues. “It was just never like that for me.”

“And, for him?” Juliana questions.

“I think he was in love with the idea of me,” she answers honestly. She goes quiet for a moment. A certain sadness clouds her eyes. “I don’t know. He’s been through a lot.”

Juliana hums in response, as she walks over to her couch. She takes a seat and sets her mug on the coffee table beside her. She then settles in, resting one arm up on the back of the sofa.

“Oooh. What’s that?” Valentina asks, catching her mid-movement.

The quick change in focus seems abrupt, but she is thankful for the sudden break from the somewhat somber topic they had found themselves in. Juliana looks over at the table. Her sketchbook is sitting out, turned to the latest design she had been working on.

“That is probably what I’ll actually be spending my day doing,” she answers, as she nods towards it.

“Will you show it to me?”

Valentina states her request, as she gets up from the table. She’s finished her pancakes and is walking across her hotel room. Juliana watches her stop at what looks like a small bar. She reaches out, absentmindedly selecting a most likely ludicrously overpriced bottle of water.

Juliana pulls the sketchbook into her lap and switches her camera. They stare down at the drawing together. Valentina is quiet for a moment. Her bright eyes are just scanning the screen excitedly. She takes a drink and then lets out a small breath.

“That’s incredible. I still can’t believe you’re a fashion designer,” she states, her voice full of wonder.

“Not quite,” Juliana clarifies. “I’m only an assistant to an assistant right now. It’s basically a glorified internship.

“Your job right now doesn’t define you, Juls,” Valentina replies. “You’re a designer. You’re going to have your own assistant to your assistant one day. I’m sure of it.”

When they were texting back and forth earlier this week, Valentina had asked about her work. She couldn’t tell if the other woman was genuinely enthusiastic about it or just being polite. But, seeing and hearing how she was reacting now left no doubt in Juliana’s mind.

Juliana switches her camera to face her and smiles broadly in response. She feels that familiar pull, again. She just wants to hold the other woman’s hands in her own. The idea of her touch seems so grounding. Juliana can’t help but think that the timing of this trip was unfortunate.

“You know, I’ve always had this secret fantasy of being a part time runway model,” Valentina says, biting at her bottom lip.

Juliana stares at her for a moment, her head tilting a little to the side.

“What?” Valentina asks, feeling suddenly self conscious at her confession.

“Only someone as beautiful as you could get away with saying that so casually.”

Valentina plops down on the edge of the hotel bed with a small incredulous laugh. She shakes her head playfully and moves to lay down. Her shoulders are propped up on what Juliana believes to be way too many fluffy pillows for one bed.

“I’ll tell you what,” she continues. “If I ever have a show, I’ll put you in it. You’ll be my featured model.”

“Oh, no. You better leave the featured spot to the professionals,” Valentina counters. “I just want to be one of the regular pack. Like, the kind of model that ends up in a compilation video of models falling off the runway. We know with my dancing coordination, there’s a good chance that will be my fate.”

Juliana laughs in response. She places her sketchbook back on the table, and slides down to stretch out on the couch. She positions a throw pillow against the arm of the sofa and rests her head up against it. Juliana relaxes, mirroring Valentina’s current state.

“I wouldn’t be worried,” she comments. “You seem to respond well with just a little instruction.”

She watches Valentina turn onto her side in the bed. Her phone is still out in her hand in front of her. The change in position switches it to landscape mode, and Juliana rotates her screen to accommodate.

Between the walk and two brunches, Juliana imagines the other woman is probably ready for an early afternoon nap. They both are quiet for a minute, just watching each other. The alertness in Valentina’s eyes looks to be fading. She seems to be floating in thought.

“I really wish you were here,” Valentina whispers.

“Me too,” Juliana replies, with a smile. “That hotel room looks amazing.”

“It would be more amazing with you in it,” the other woman states. Her eyes flicker and the words, “like everything” barely escapes her lips.

“Like you?”

“Juls…”

Her name rolls out of Valentina’s mouth and morphs into a very slight moan. Juliana swallows thickly, the air shifting rapidly between them. She can feel her heart rate start to pick up and her breathing deepens.

Valentina’s free hand moves up to her neck. She then drags her long fingers from her collarbone down her chest. Her mouth is slightly open, as her lungs expand and contract with full breaths. Her hand skims across her abdomen and plays with the hem of her shirt. Valentina’s eyes stay locked on Juliana’s throughout her motion. As she slips her fingers underneath her shirt, Juliana’s gaze follows their path. Juliana feels her nerves rise at where this is going, but is struggling to muster any desire to stop it.

Valentina’s hand slides along her skin painfully slowly. Her fitted t-shirt rises up with the movement as her fingertips ascend her torso. Juliana watches as the other woman cups her chest, squeezing lightly. Her shirt has risen up just enough for the bottoms of her breasts to be visible. The darker skin of her nipples is just barely visible below the hem of her shirt. Valentina audibly sighs, as her nimble fingers work at the flesh.

“Juls,” she whispers, again. This time it sounds like an instruction. Juliana’s mind races to comply with whatever request will tumble out of her mouth next.

A sudden loud knock causes both of them to jump.

“Valentina!” Juliana hears someone yell in the distance.

Valentina groans, as she rolls her face into the pillow.

“You ok?” she asks.

“It’s my father,” Valentina responds. She momentarily pushes further into the pillow and then sits up. She runs her hand up through her hair and lets out a long breath. Her flustered disposition is written clearly on her face. “I’m sorry to leave like this, but I need to go.”

“I understand.”

Valentina’s eyes soften at Juliana’s quick response. Her lips twitch into a small, close-mouthed smile. Another loud knock echoes through the room. Valentina moves towards her phone, placing a quick kiss against the camera lens. Then the screen goes black.

Juliana drops her own phone to her chest and releases a deep breath. She stares up at the ceiling. Her mind feeling completely blank. She doesn’t even know where to start. Her body and her emotions are both humming.

Her eyes close on their own accord. As soon as her brain fires up again, all it’s interested in doing is replaying the last few minutes for her. She sees Valentina’s intense eyes burning into her own. Valentina’s soft lips are wet and parted. Valentina’s hands are pushing up at her shirt, revealing smooth skin to Juliana.

There’s no ignoring the fact that Juliana has been left in an aroused state. She would be content to abandon it and move on with her day, but her stupid brain keeps playing these images in a loop. She finally acquiesces to their presence and slides her hand down. She slips her fingers quickly beneath her underwear and into her heat. She imagines Valentina above her, sharing her rhythm.

Juliana’s phone buzzes against her chest and she pulls her hand abruptly away from herself. She answers as quickly as she can hoping Valentina was able to resolve whatever her father needed from her.

“Hey,” she says, softly. Her voice sounding a touch deeper in her ears than she’s used to.

“Juli?”

Juliana’s cousin’s voice is like a tidal wave of cold water dumped on every inch of her skin. She sits upright in response.

“Natalia,” she replies.

“I hope you’re up, because we’re headed over.”

“What?” Juliana asks.

“Me and my parents are coming over to take you out to lunch,” she explains. “Sorry. My mom wanted it to be a surprise, but I thought it might be best to give you the heads up.”

Juliana remains silent, not exactly sure what to say. The entire morning, from its very early start, has been an absolute rollercoaster for her brain. She just needs a moment to recover. She turns and places her feet on the floor.

“Juli?” she hears, again.

“Yeah, I’m up,” Juliana confirms. “I’ll see you soon.”

Juliana hits the ‘end call’ button and tosses her phone to the side. She brings her hand up to her chest, letting her upper body fall against the back of the couch. Her focus is a mess. Juliana would feel totally bewildered, if it wasn’t for the fact that her heart and brain had already seemed to form a singular agreement. All she really wanted to think about was Valentina.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm on a 10 day road trip, so the next update may take a little longer than usual. But I did bring my laptop with me, just in case I have a little time to write. Also, happy day after Juliantina valentine's day! I was pleased to see the girls acknowledge the fans insistence on it being a thing. Lol. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! :)


	10. Chapter 10

Juliana takes in a deep breath, as she looks up from her feet to the solid gray door in front of her. The quiet corridor that surrounds her only serves to echo the steady, quick thump of her heart. On her bus ride over, she had attributed the pace of her pulse to the anticipation of seeing Valentina after weeks apart. But her excitement had clearly given way to nerves as she had ascended in the elevator of the posh condo.

Valentina returned from Barcelona three days ago. The women had continued to text each other, even while she was still in Europe. But there was something about them being in the same city again that was driving Juliana insane. She couldn’t stop thinking about Valentina. She found herself trying to spot the other woman’s face on a busy street corner or imagining the vibration of notifications of texts from her in her hand. Her new sketches would sit unfinished, as her mind wandered to recall a thing Valentina had said or a certain way she moved her lips.

Also, it wasn’t helping that Valentina had gone a little quiet on her typically active Instagram. There were only so many times she could refresh a feed, before Mark Zuckerburg himself was bound to show up and tell her to chill. She knew it was just that Valentina was most likely busy since her return. She was genuinely doing her best to be patient, but couldn’t help feeling that she was failing miserably.

Juliana had been distracting herself with a TV show marathon last night when she received a text from Valentina. It included an invitation to her apartment this evening, which felt like the most glorious blessing and daunting curse. Juliana had told herself that the next time she was face to face with the other woman, that she had to say something about her blossoming feelings. The physical connection that they shared was nothing short of mind blowing, but she could no longer deny that her heart was starting to get involved. As much as she wanted to play it cool, she knew it would be disastrous if she didn’t work with the other woman to build some definition around what was happening between them.

Juliana raises her hand and lightly knocks on Valentina’s door. She quickly decides that the sound is most likely too soft to hear across the apartment, so she raps again a little stronger. She had sent a text to let her know she was on her way over, but hadn’t received a response yet.

As soon as the door opens, Juliana’s expression of nervous excitement falls. It is not who she was expecting.

Sergio is standing in front of her with a beer in one hand and a lopsided grin across his face.

“Julieta!” he says excitedly, greeting her.

Juliana’s look of disappointment morphs into one of annoyance, and she shifts on her feet. Sergio lets out a laugh in response.

“I’m just messing with you,” he states, as he moves forward and gives her a kiss on the cheek. “It’s good to see you again, Juliana.”

She offers him a closed-mouth smile and moves tentatively into the foyer. Juliana hears other people talking and laughing in the apartment. It draws her attention away, as Sergio sidesteps behind her to close the door.

“Is that a gift for Valentina?” he asks, pointing to the bag in her hands.

She opens her mouth to respond, but before she can answer a familiar voice calls out.

“Juls!”

Juliana turns around just in time to be enveloped in a strong hug by Valentina. She immediately melts into the embrace, closing her eyes and absorbing the warmth of the other woman. Valentina rocks her a little side to side, shifting the length of their bodies closer.

“It’s good to see you,” she says softly.

Juliana tightens her grip on Valentina in response. She lets herself indulge in the moment for as long as possible. She can feel Sergio’s stare upon them, though, and it makes her a little self conscious. She lets go of the other woman, stepping back a little as she tucks a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

“I brought back your stuff,” Juliana says, raising up the bag in her left hand.

Valentina’s eyes move from the bag, slowly up her arm, chest, and neck and finally connect with Juliana’s gaze. Valentina bites at her lip and then smiles brightly. She takes Juliana’s hand in her own and then turns towards Sergio.

“Tell everyone I’ll be back in a second. We’re just going to drop this off in my room.”

Sergio nods with a smile, his eyes bouncing back and forth between them before he heads to the living room. It’s then that Juliana spots the balloons and cake sitting on the kitchen island. She feels Valentina tug at her hand and pull her in the direction of the bedroom. Once they get to the door, Valentina pushes it open and motions for Juliana to walk in.

When Juliana gets to the foot of her bed, she spins back around towards the other woman.

“Val. Why didn’t you tell me it was your birth—“

Juliana’s question is cut short as Valentina crashes their lips together. Both of her hands are cupping Juliana’s face, drawing her into the kiss. They stay in the same position giving themselves a moment to sit in the embrace. Then Valentina pulls back slowly and looks into Juliana’s eyes.

“Hi,” she whispers.

“Hi,” Juliana says simply in return.

Their breaths fall in unison, and they openly smile at each other. Juliana leans in, capturing Valentina in a gentler but much deeper kiss. The bag slips from her hand, landing with a plop on the floor. She slides her palms around Valentina’s waist, as the other woman moves her arms over Juliana’s shoulders. Valentina leans back a little, pulling Juliana’s body over hers as her head tilts forward to keep their lips connected. The kiss is languid and intimate. Juliana feels Valentina’s warm tongue swipe softly against her bottom lip, and then the other woman shifts back a little separating their mouths.

“Come on,” Valentina says. “I want to introduce you to everyone.”

Juliana gives her a small nod. Valentina slides her arms down and takes her hand.

She follows Valentina out of the room and towards the kitchen, where most of the people seem to be gathered. There’s just a half dozen people or so in the party, including Sergio and Lucho. The group turns around and offers a somewhat drunken sounding cheer to Valentina’s return. Some of the faces look familiar and Juliana wonders if maybe they were in the club that night.

Valentina laughs in response and turns towards Juliana releasing her hand.

“Everyone,” she says, drawing their rapt attention. “This is my friend I’ve been telling you all about, Juliana.”

A chorus of greetings is shouted her way and Juliana smiles broadly as she offers a wave.

As soon as the attention is given, it drops away in favor of celebrating the birthday girl. Juliana watches Valentina hug her friends as they shove a shot glass into her hands. Based on everyone’s state of soberness, this party had most likely started even before they arrived tonight. A drink is also offered to Juliana, and she accepts it as a courtesy. She smiles politely, attempting to keep up with the inside jokes that are bouncing between the rowdy group of friends.

She steps back a little, smiling as she watches Valentina blush from all the attention.

~~~

Juliana steps closer to the living room window, taking in the view of the city lights that stretch out before her. She remembers Valentina had once commented that she chose this apartment for the view. In her previous visits, Juliana’s attention was always much more focused on the owner of the space. She wasn’t as familiar with what lied outside of it. It was nice.

“So… am I ever going to get a ‘thank you’?”

Sergio’s words in her ear prompt Juliana to turn around and face him.

“I owe you a ‘thank you’?” she asks, one of her eyebrows raising in question.

“Yeah. I introduced you two,” he explains. “Now, you’re good friends. I think that warrants a little appreciation.”

Juliana rolls her eyes playfully at Sergio’s insistent smirk. She glances over at Valentina. The other woman is still in the kitchen, drinking and talking animatedly.

_Friends._

They were such good friends, according to Sergio. And, according to Valentina. Juliana had flinched a little when she was introduced earlier with that title, but it would be completely unwarranted for her to feel upset. How else would she be introduced?

She stares at the oversized couch near them, where her good _friend_ had made her wet she doesn’t know how many times before. She shakes her head and looks up. Valentina is now leaning on one of her other female friends. Her arm is draped across the other woman’s shoulders and they’re laughing closely.

“She must have taken a real liking to you,” Sergio continues, bringing Juliana’s attention back to him. “This is the inner circle party.”

“Is today her actual birthday?”

Sergio nods.

“Her family is having some bigger gathering this weekend. Tonights festivities are for a smaller crowd.”

Juliana hums in response and asks, “how long have you known each other?”

Sergio takes in a big breath, looking up in thought. “I suck at math,” he says, with a laugh. “But me, Lucho and her met when we were like 11 or 12 years old. It was one of those transitional years. We ended up in the same class and kind of bonded instantly.”

Juliana feels someone’s eyes upon her and looks up to see Valentina staring intently at her from across the room. Her expression is somewhat serious in comparison to earlier. Their mutual gaze lingers and then is interrupted by someone calling for Valentina’s attention.

“Vale is one of the most open, kind people I’ve ever met,” Sergio comments.

Juliana bites at her lip and nods in understanding.

“She also can be very experimental. She was the first to try anything. It can be exciting, but sometimes kind of a pain. We’d find ourselves in these crazy situations,” he explains. “Which wasn’t a big deal for her or Lucho. You know, millionaires can pretty much do whatever they want and get away with it. There’s always enough money to fix things or replace them. They pretty much have access to whatever they want, whenever they want it. I think that was one of the big things her and Lucho connected on. I was just always kind of along for the ride. You know what I mean?”

Sergio’s light laugh punctuates his slight rant and he takes a sip of his beer.

“I’m guessing you have a lot of friends,” Juliana comments, desperate to shift the focus of their conversation to anything else.

“I do alright,” he says, with a shrug.

He looks very pleased with her observation and leans a little closer to her. Juliana can’t help but take the opportunity to mess with him a little.

“What about Natalia?” she asks, lifting her chin. “Is she a friend?”

Sergio nods, as he licks his lips.

“You have a lot of friends you make out with, huh?”

He laughs almost instantaneously in response.

“Like Lucho?” she questions.

She narrows her eyes at him, as she fights a smile. His face drops and he leans in conspiratorially.

“Yeah,” he answers. “But he’s a terrible kisser. I don’t know why Vale stayed with him for so long.”

Juliana maintains the eye contact for a moment and then leans back in laughter. The playful glint in his eyes revealing his ability to keep up with her teasing. She reaches out, pushing at his arm. He laughs with her, tucking his shoulders forward a little and leaning back towards her. Out of the corner of her eye, Juliana notices Valentina watching her, again. The other woman tosses back a shot and flexes her jaw.

As Juliana’s gaze drifts back to Sergio, she considers his last statement about Lucho. She knows Valentina shares a similar sentiment, as far as not really understanding why she dated the boy for years.

She clears her throat lightly and takes in a breath.

“You know, I think sometimes we make allowances for friends we love even if we know it’s not working.”

Sergio takes another sip of his beer and nods.

“You speaking from personal experience?”

Juliana looks down shyly in response.

She suddenly feels an arm slide over her shoulder and across her chest. She’s being pulled back into Valentina. Juliana stumbles a little, reaching up and bracing her hand on the other woman’s arm.

“Juls! You’re so pretty! Isn’t she pretty, Sergio?” Valentina drunkenly slurs into her ear.

“She’s beautiful,” he states in agreement.

Valentina turns her head, nuzzling into Juliana’s neck. She breathes in deeply through her nose. Juliana responds with a small nervous laugh at the intimate act. She attempts to pull away, but Valentina’s grip on her is solid.

“You always smell so good, too. You have to tell me what perfume you use.”

Juliana blushes, shifting in Valentina’s embrace. She turns her shoulders and breaks the tight hold.

“I’m not wearing any,” Juliana mumbles quickly. “Val, I think I’m going to go. It’s getting pretty late.”

Valentina instantly pouts. Her brow scrunching together, as her lower lip juts out.

“No. I want you to stay,” she pleads. “We didn’t get to spend any time together.”

“I’ll stay with you!” Lucho says, as he comes up behind Valentina and wraps his arms around her waist. His boisterous interruption startles them both.

“No!” she replies, emphatically. She pushes his arms away and stumbles towards Juliana. “I want you to go. I want everyone to go!”

The room grows quiet at her drunken outburst. Juliana watches Sergio sigh deeply. She knows he’s probably bracing himself for more referee duty. The former couple is most likely headed for a fight. Valentina reaches out and places her hand on his forearm.

“Afterparty,” she states.

He nods once and raises his voice yelling out excitedly to the room, “afterparty!”

Valentina whispers to Sergio, “take my card. It’s in my wallet right over there.”

Juliana watches the other woman as she points towards her purse, hanging by the front door. He squeezes Valentina’s hand that is still on his arm and offers her a soft smile. The small group seems easily swayed by his suggestion and they begin making their way towards the front door. Juliana rubs at her neck and then takes a single step forward to follow everyone out.

Valentina moves in front of her path, stopping her with her physical presence and the intensity in her eyes.

“Please stay.”

Juliana watches her for a moment. Valentina’s chest is rising and falling deeply. Her breath smells like a mix of Mezcal and frosting. Her eyes are clouded and red. This wasn’t at all what Juliana was hoping for this evening. She closes her own eyes in frustration. When she opens them, she sees Sergio standing in the front doorway with a questioning expression on his face. She nods at him that it’s ok for him to leave. She then looks back at Valentina and offers her a concerned smile.

As soon as the door shuts, Valentina launches forward pressing her lips against Juliana’s. She runs her hands down her back, cupping her backside. Juliana does her best to simply respond to the aggressive advances to keep them from tumbling backwards to the floor.

“Val. Val. Hold on,” she states, hoping to gain her attention between kisses.

She finally is able to capture the other woman’s wrists and still her roaming hands.

“Hey. Look,” she says, softly. She lets go of Valentina’s arms and slides her hands up to the other woman’s shoulders. “I think you need to sleep this off.”

Valentina swallows deeply. Her throat moving with the action. She’s searching Juliana’s eyes. She leans forward, again, placing soft kisses against her mouth.

“It’s ok,” she whispers. “If you’re worried that I’m too drunk to make this decision, I promise that I’m very, very… very consenting.”

Juliana feels Valentina’s warm hands slip underneath her shirt, as the other woman moves her lips down to her neck. Juliana huffs in response, shaking her head a little and looking up.

“Val. Not tonight,” she replies.

Valentina whines in response, sounding like a frustrated child.

“I told you I want to,” she insists, her hands moving further up Juliana’s ribs.

“But what about my consent?”

Juliana’s words ring out in the empty apartment. She didn’t mean to state them with such force, but she’s tired and her patience is running thin.

Valentina’s hands still. She moves her head back from Juliana’s neck.

They stare at each other for a moment. She sees the tears start to pool in the corners of the other woman’s eyes. Then suddenly Valentina covers her mouth and takes off towards her bathroom. Juliana stays in place, closing her eyes and wincing. She hears the tell tale sign of this evenings festivities coming up from Valentina’s stomach.

Juliana walks over to the front door, verifying that it’s locked.

She then follows Valentina’s path into the bathroom, mentally preparing herself to spend the night taking care of the other woman.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back from my road trip! It was good times. Very fun. I'm a little sad to be returning to work, but happy to be posting a new chapter. And, I know. I know. I hate when authors do this, too. But there has to be conflict for growth, right? Just a little drama on the horizon. Hope its still a fun read ;)


	11. Chapter 11

Juliana lets out a long silent yawn, as she leans down to put on her shoes. She’s sitting on the end of Valentina’s bed, finishing getting dressed for the day. Sometime late last night, she had given up on any hope of going home to change before work today. Her current outfit wasn’t going to be her finest business attire, but Juliana couldn’t really string together the energy to care. She had thankfully showered and changed before she came over to the party last night, so at least she wasn’t going to show up to work in the same clothes.

Juliana had extended the courtesy of not turning on any lights in the room while she got ready. She didn’t want to do anything to provoke the other woman’s certain hangover. Nature was helping, as well. The typically bright sunrise was just a soft glow in the room, diffused by the thick cloud cover this morning.

She hears Valentina stir behind her, and Juliana looks back over her shoulder as the other woman shifts under the covers. She watches her eyes blink open and then immediately close tighter. Valentina lets out a small groan, as she brings her palm up to her forehead. Juliana gives her a sympathetic closed-mouth smile and then stands up from the bed. She walks to the side that Valentina is laying closest to, and takes a seat on the very edge.

“Good morning,” Juliana says softly.

Valentina extends her long arms down by her side, pushing her hands into the plush mattress below her as she slowly moves into a sitting position. She then rubs at her eyes, and drags her fingertips down her cheeks and to her neck.

“Morning,” she mumbles, the word falling out of her mouth just barely.

Juliana reaches over to the bedside table and picks up the Advil and glass of water that she set out last night. She extends them in Valentina’s direction, with a slight lift of her eyebrow. Valentina accepts the offerings and gives her a small smile.

“How are you feeling?” Juliana asks.

“Not fantastic, but I definitely have been worse.”

Juliana watches the other woman place the medication in her mouth and take a long draw of the water.

“I’m kind of thankful that I threw up some of what I drank, instead of absorbing it all,” Valentina says and takes another sip.

“Oh. So you _do_ remember last night,” Juliana states, her surprise evident in her raised voice. She leans towards the other woman affectionately, making stronger eye contact.

“Bits and pieces,” Valentina whispers. The other woman looks down quickly at the glass cradled in her hands. Her cheeks pink ever so slightly in embarrassment.

“Do you remember fighting with me about brushing your teeth?”

The question rolls off of Juliana’s tongue playfully, and Valentina shakes her head in response.

“Or, fighting with me about putting on your pajamas?”

Valentina repeats the motion.

“Well, to give you a quick recap: I only won one of those battles,” Juliana states.

She glances down at Valentina’s naked torso. The other woman’s body is only covered by the sheets pooled at her waist. Valentina lets out a small, humored huff at her own state.

“I mostly remember a lot of detail about my toilet seat,” she comments.

“You did spend some quality time up close and personal with it,” Juliana says, looking up and fighting a smirk.

She then glances down at her phone in her hand and releases a long breath in response.

“I, unfortunately, have to go.”

“Where?” Valentina questions quickly. Her brow scrunches in confusion.

“I have to go to work.”

Valentina opens her mouth to reply, but before any words can escape, Juliana leans in pressing a quick kiss against her lips. It leaves the other woman perplexed, as she watches Juliana get up from the bed and collect the remainder of her things.

“Wait. I don’t want you to go,” Valentina finally manages to say. “Can’t you play hooky again and have breakfast with me?”

Juliana turns around. She’s standing just beyond the foot of the bed. The pleading look in Valentina’s eyes tugs at her heart, and she lets out a somber sigh.

“Not today,” she explains.

Valentina shakes her head slightly.

“I’m sure they can do without you for one day.”

“Some of us have to actually work for a living, Valentina.”

The statement leaves Juliana’s mouth before she can stop herself. A small pause of silence hangs between them.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Valentina asks.

The other woman’s eyes are locked to hers and she can see the hurt reflected there. Juliana was slightly annoyed at Valentina’s insinuation, but mostly she’s frustrated that she can’t just stay and have breakfast. She runs her hand up through her hair, as her mouth hangs open in hesitation. Her eyes bounce around the room. Juliana lets out a small breath, giving up on her attempt to form an apology.

“Nothing,” she finally states. “I have to go.”

Juliana takes one last glance at Valentina and then exits the room. She walks quickly towards the front door, double checking her pockets to make sure she has everything with her.

“Hold on,” she hears the other woman call out behind her.

Juliana stops, her shoulders dropping in exasperation as she lets out a deep breath. She begrudgingly turns around to see Valentina trailing a few feet behind her. The other woman is pulling on her robe and loosely tying the belt around her waist as she approaches.

“What’s wrong?” Valentina questions.

“Nothing’s wrong. I just need to get going.”

“It doesn’t take that long to walk over there,” the other woman says in a huff. “You’re running away, and I want to know why.”

“It doesn’t mat…” Juliana starts her reply and then stops looking away. “Everything is fine.”

“Sounds like it,” Valentina quips.

Juliana rolls her eyes at the comment and steps towards the door. She feels Valentina’s hand grab her forearm in response.

“Please just tell me what’s wrong,” the other woman says, as her eyes search Juliana’s desperately.

Juliana can’t do this now. She can’t have this conversation in the context of a rushed morning argument. There’s no way to explain why she can’t talk about it without revealing what she can’t talk about. Everything is mixed up. All of the feelings she wants to confess. Sergio’s words last night. Valentina’s drunken behavior. They’re all just swirling around in her head in a big mess.

Taking care of Valentina late into the night had provided her a distraction from having to process everything that had happened. Now, it was all bubbling to the surface. The sudden panic only pushes Juliana towards her instincts. She’s a runner. That’s how she deals. Valentina had hit the nail on the head before when she called her out on it. Her persistence now was only making Juliana feel more claustrophobic. Her instincts scream at her to do whatever is necessary. 

“Nothing is wrong,” Juliana states, again. The disdain clear in her voice.

She can already tell from the look on the other woman’s face that this explanation won’t suffice. So she pushes. She does what she has to.

“I have to go to work,” she continues. “I have to pay rent. Not everyone is a trust fund baby that can blow off their responsibilities.”

The minute Valentina’s face drops in a mixture of confusion and hurt, Juliana’s brain congratulates herself on her accomplishment. She did it. She earned her escape by being cruel. Valentina’s grip slips from her arm, and her eyes intensely bore into Juliana’s as she moves even closer.

“Is that really what you think of me?” she asks, her eyebrow raising and the corner of her mouth twitching as she leans in.

“So now you care what I think?”

They’re standing so close Juliana can feel the solid puffs of Valentina’s breath on her face. She can feel the heat radiating off of Valentina’s body and the smell of her skin. It lights up every one of Juliana’s senses, and she hates it. She hates that—no matter what—this woman has such a strong hold on her. She can be happy or sad or vulnerable or angry and her body still responds with such overwhelming desire. It simultaneously frustrates her and excites her, and Juliana reacts in the only way she can think of in the moment. She closes the distance, pressing her mouth firmly against Valentina’s as she cups the other woman face in her hands.

Valentina lets out a small yelp in response to Juliana moving forward with such force. As soon as Valentina’s back hits the foyer wall, she counters by pressing her lips into Juliana’s, returning the kiss full force. Juliana disconnects their mouths for a split second, just long enough to part her lips further and slip her tongue into Valentina’s mouth. Juliana’s hands slide firmly down Valentina’s chest settling at her waist, pinning her against the wall. She bites at the other woman’s bottom lip, pulling at the plump flesh and then immediately soothing it with her tongue.

Juliana drives into Valentina’s hips with her own. The moan that escapes Valentina’s throat, inspires movement and Juliana’s hands work to untie the belt on her robe. She pushes at the lapels of it and moves her attention down to the other woman’s long neck. Her tongue, teeth, and mouth work to mark the perfect column of skin. Juliana’s heart pounds in her ears, and the beat is reflected in Valentina’s pulse point against her lips.

This is what they’re good at. This heat building between them is the extent of what Juliana can handle right now. So she clears her head of anything else and focuses on it. She palms at Valentina’s breasts, firmly cupping them and massaging. Then she drops her head down, replacing her hands with her warm mouth. She leaves light pink marks across the swell of Valentina’s breasts as she works. She pulls a nipple into her mouth, lightly scraping at the tip with her teeth.

Valentina’s hand has found a home at the nape of Juliana’s neck. The other woman’s long fingers massage the back of her head encouraging her very focused attention. It’s not long before Valentina’s need for friction makes itself known. She starts to move her hips, attempting to make contact again. Juliana lowers herself to her knees. Her mouth leaving a trail of kisses down Valentina’s taught stomach. She breathes in deeply, taking in the smell of Valentina’s excitement and feels her adrenaline rush at the scent. Juliana closes her eyes and leans forward letting her nose brush against the soft skin just below Valentina’s abdomen. Her mouth salivates in response and she swallows deeply. Juliana momentarily wonders if it’s possible for someone to pass out from pure desire. She’s never felt compelled to do anything as much as she feels compelled to do this.

Juliana pushes forward, burying her mouth between Valentina’s legs. Her tongue extends out immediately, anxious to take in the taste and feel. Valentina lets out a small, shaky moan. Juliana quickly becomes obsessed with running her tongue through the length of Valentina. She repeats the motion a few times, until she finds the source of her wetness and slips her tongue up into the other woman as deeply as she can. Instantaneously, her former obsession is replaced with a new one, and she pushes rhythmically into Valentina.

Juliana feels the other woman start to shake above her. She’s applying pressure to the back of Juliana’s head in time with their motions. Juliana opens her eyes and looks up to find Valentina staring intensely down at her. Their gaze stays connected as their rhythm continues. The only sound in the apartment is the repetitive motion of slick skin and the soft groans of their effort. The thought crosses Juliana’s mind that she would suspend this moment forever if she could. Then it all suddenly feels like too much.

Juliana feels the tears start to sting the corners of her eyes, so she shuts them quickly and breaks away. She stays on her knees but she moves her head up, digging her forehead into Valentina’s stomach as she takes large, gulping breaths of air into her lungs.

Valentina’s hand remains in her hair and her fingertips soothingly stroke at the base of Juliana’s scalp. It calms Juliana and she feels her breathing start to even back out. Her heart rate still pumps steadily in her ears. Determined not to disappoint, Juliana slides her hand up between Valentina’s legs. Her fingers stroke at the wetness, lubricating them fully. Then she pushes up into Valentina, the angle affording her access to bury her fingers up to her knuckles. The other woman’s hand slips from her hair down to grip Juliana’s shoulder in response. The deep moan that escapes Valentina’s lips is unlike any she’s heard before.

The sound encourages her, and Juliana begins long persistent strokes in response. Valentina’s hips grind down with her thrusts. A string of expletives tumble from the other woman’s mouth, as her fingers dig hard into Juliana’s shoulder.

The muscles in Juliana’s forearm start to burn as she moves faster and faster. She believes there’s a good chance she’ll end up with a series of small round bruises just above her shoulder blade from the death grip Valentina has on her. There’s very little in this world that would stop her now. All of the emotion—the frustration, the desire, the desperate pleading are poured into this moment. Only when she feels Valentina clinch and spasm around her fingers does she even consider slowing her thrusts.

Juliana stays in her as their movement works to an unhurried halt. Her forehead is still firmly pressed against Valentina’s stomach and their labored breaths echo throughout the apartment in unison. She suddenly feels Valentina’s legs start to buckle. Juliana rises up quickly placing her arms underneath the other woman’s and pushes her against the wall for support. Valentina trembles in her embrace and her hands weakly come up to rest on Juliana’s biceps. She can feel Valentina’s warm breaths across her neck, pushing out in measured repetition. When Juliana can tell Valentina is standing a little more on her own, she pulls her head back to finally look the other woman in the eyes.

The longer they stare at each other, the more Juliana feels her chest tighten. She swallows thickly. The realization that she had only temporarily distracted herself from the mess in her head comes crashing to the forefront. The room starts to spin, making her feel suddenly like she can’t breathe.

“It’s ok,” she hears Valentina whisper.

_It’s not. It’s really not._ Juliana bites at her bottom lip and closes her eyes. She opens them slowly, making eye contact once again. The seconds stretch and stretch between them, and then Juliana breaks.

“Happy Birthday,” she says, her voice shaking. “I hope you got everything you wanted.”

Juliana releases her hold on Valentina and backs up. She gives the other woman a watery smile and then blinks rapidly at the tears in her eyes. She feels the front door handle in her palm and she turns it, stepping quickly out of the apartment.

She manages to make it to the street before the tears start to pour down her face. Juliana wipes at them, covering her eyes and ducking into an alley. She falls back against the rough brick face of the building wall behind her. She’s fought it for too long, and now she’s too weak to stop the sobs that spill from her lips. Denying this release had only made things worse, so she allows herself to take the moment to let it ride its course. When she finally starts to settle, she feels her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulls it out and watches Valentina’s name light up the screen.

Juliana hesitates and then hits the red ‘Decline’ button. She wipes at her face and continues her path to work.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *deep breath* Ok, I'm ready. You can hit me.
> 
> I've had a love/hate relationship with this chapter since I wrote the outline. It's a necessary part of the story, but damn if it didn't hurt to write it. I was getting dangerously close to over-editing it, so I'm releasing it into the wild.
> 
> Y'all continue to astound me with the level of comments and feedback for this fic. I never expected it. You sure do know how to make a girl feel special! You're all amazing. Thank you for continuing to read and comment every chapter. I'll try my best to not leave us too long in this state :)


	12. Chapter 12

Everything is numb. Juliana stares blankly into the distance. The ability to form thoughts has abandoned her. Sounds are muffled. Colors are lifeless and muted. The only discernible feeling is this persistent twisting knot in the pit of her stomach. She looks down at the mostly uneaten burger in her hand. Juliana had spent a vast majority of her lunch break wandering through the park, until she was able to convince herself that she probably needed to eat.

She bites at the tip of her nail and then rotates her hand. Her head tilts to the side. She takes her bottom lip between her index finger and pad of her thumb, pinching slowly at the flesh and releasing it. Juliana rubs her palm against her chin, as she slumps further down into the simple wooden park bench. She decides her third bite of food—that she barely managed to swallow—will be her last for now.

This morning had been a total disaster. All she knows for sure is that she had literally and figuratively fucked Valentina over and then left. Everything since that moment was a foggy blur. She recalls making it to her office and being cognizant of the fact that she must look like a complete lunatic. She took some time in the office restroom washing her tear-stained face and attempting to straighten herself up to a halfway acceptable state.

There were meetings and emails and phone calls. She did them all on autopilot.

Juliana didn’t know if it was humanly possible to handle a situation worse than she had. Partly, it was just baffling to her. This had never happened with any of her boyfriends. Not that there were many. This wasn’t like her, at all. Valentina seemed to have that effect on her. The number of firsts that she had experienced since meeting the other woman was out of control. This was a ‘first’ she had no pride in, though.

Juliana wasn’t necessarily the strongest communicator, but she knew better than to behave the way she did this morning. Her emotions just felt so raw all the time with Valentina. She was obsessive and giddy and sexual. I mean, _my god_. She never thought about it or wanted it as much before.

Juliana sits forward on the bench, resting her elbows on her thighs. A long breath escapes her lips.

The core of the problem isn’t lost on her. Her brain may have been overwhelmed in Valentina’s presence earlier, but she’s known for days now the truth of it all. Sergio’s comments only poked at her pre-existing fears. And then Valentina’s drunken behavior layered on top of it, pushing them further. The idea that the other woman’s interest in her was only casual or experimental was torturing Juliana.

How do you tell someone that you barely know the extent of your feelings for them? That was definitely not a conversation she wanted to have on the phone or in a room full of people or rushed in an apartment foyer on her way to work. She had naively hoped that Valentina’s actions would reveal their connection to be something other than just friendly or sexual.

She should have just asked. But that was part of the problem, though. She was terrified. She wanted some sort of indicator, and Valentina had been so hard to read.

A majority of the other woman’s focus during their time together had been physical. But there had also been walks through the park and travel coffee mugs shoved into Juliana’s hands on the way to work and kisses that took her breath away. Even when she had arrived last night, Valentina had led her into her bedroom and kissed her with a passion that felt deeper than just a casual interest.

Valentina had also spent most the night ignoring her, drinking and hanging on her other friends. When she finally made her way to Juliana, she was only focused on getting her own needs met. Valentina had nearly forced herself on Juliana, not reading how uncomfortable she was. It could have been because she was intoxicated, but Juliana worried that the alcohol only served to reveal Valentina’s true feelings.

It was clear that the other woman was quite jealous that Sergio was talking to her. But she didn’t know if its was because Valentina cares for her, or if she was just being possessive of her.

Juliana leans back and rubs at her face. She pulls her phone from her pocket and stares at the screen. Her mind goes blank for a moment, and then she finds herself pressing the call button. Her heart races, and she takes in a deep breath. It rings twice in her ear and then the call picks up.

“Hola, mija.”

“Hi, ma,” she responds quickly. “How’s it going?”

“Good. I’m getting ready for work. What are you up to? Are you on a break?” Lupe asks.

“Yes.”

The line goes quiet, as Juliana searches her brain for anything to continue the conversation.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“Juli…”

There’s a trace of reprimand in her voice, and Juliana suddenly feels sheepish that she even thought she could get away with her mother not noticing.

“I’m just having a hard time today,” she admits, her voice sounding small in her ears. She looks down and sees a spot on her jeans where some ketchup had fallen. She wets her thumb and rubs ineffectively at the fabric. “It’s lonely here.”

Juliana suddenly wishes that she wasn’t so far away. This would be the perfect moment to fall into her mother’s arms and not have to say a word. Given the distance, the best she can do is lean on the sound of her mother’s voice for comfort.

“I know. These things take time,” her mom responds softly. “Do you have plans with your cousin this weekend?”

Juliana blinks rapidly, fighting the looming tears. She then closes her eyes and takes in a deep breath.

“Mom. How did you know you were in love?”

The question escapes Juliana’s mouth without her full consent.

“Are you back together with Nico?” she asks in return.

“No,” Juliana answers easily. “I… I met someone else.”

“Mija, it’s only been a couple weeks.”

“It’s been almost a month,” she states, settling back against the bench.

“That’s still not long,” her mother comments.

“I know.”

There’s a pause between them, and Juliana rubs at her temple.

“Did this new guy say that he loves you?” Lupe asks.

“No. But everything feels different.”

“Juli,” her mom says and then releases a long breath. “I know things have been a little rough since you moved there. But you might be expecting too much from other people. They might be the biggest thing in your world, but you can’t expect to be all of theirs. That’s not fair.”

Her mom is right. It’s not fair. She hasn’t been fair to Valentina. She knows she wants too much. Juliana starts to question if there’s something wrong with her. She wonders if she’s manifesting all of this, if she’s causing all this pain for everyone she pursues.

“Do you think that’s what I did with Nico?” she asks, her voice shaking.

“I don’t know, mi amor,” Lupe answers. “I can’t say. I’m sorry that it’s hard right now.”

Juliana brings her hand up to her mouth to cover it. Her lips tremble against her palm.

“I’m messing everything up, ma.”

“No. I don’t believe that,” her mother states. “I know how strong you are. I know how good you are. You’ll be ok. I’m so proud of you.”

Juliana wipes at the tears on her cheeks. She feels too choked up to respond, so she opts for silence. She can almost feel her mother pouting through the phone. If she only knew.

“I love you.”

“Love you, too.”

~~~

The entire way back to the office, Juliana’s mother’s comments play on a loop in her head. She was thankful that no one had approached her on the walk, and that apparently she was able to obey basic traffic laws without much input from her brain. Juliana only emerges from her thoughts when she arrives at her desk and finds a new addition sitting on the end of it.

A large, colorful bouquet of flowers in a tall clear vase stands proudly in the space. She glances around the room, looking for any insight from her coworkers.

Juliana reaches out, pulling at the note that is taped to the front. She opens it. The words “Please forgive me” are scrawled in cursive on the thick card stock.

She suddenly feels exposed in a strange way, like everyone has read the message and is now judging her response. Juliana’s mind races. Valentina knows where she works. They had discussed it a few times. _But would she do something like this?_

The ring of her desk phone startles her, and she quickly sits. The phone number that flashes across the screen is not familiar. She picks up the receiver, as she plays with the note in her hand.

“Hello,” she says, her voice rising up to sound like a question.

“Did you get my present?”

Juliana lets out a small, disappointed sigh.

“Hi, Nico,” she responds. Her ex’s voice is not at all the one she was hoping to hear.

“Did you get it?” he asks, again.

“Yes,” she states. “Thank you. They’re beautiful.”

“Not as beautiful as you,” he replies quickly.

Juliana’s small annoyed huff prompts a light laugh from him.

“I know. I know. I have no right. But Juliana, I made a mistake. I really miss you.”

Juliana stays silent, not sure what to say.

“I’m probably not your favorite person right now,” he continues. “But I would be forever grateful if you’d let me take you to dinner. I want to explain. I want to try to make this up to you.”

“I don’t know,” she whispers, looking down at her desk. She places the card on the surface and scans the words.

“Just one dinner,” Nico begs.

Juliana bites at her lower lip. She doesn’t even know why she’s considering it. Even if Valentina is lost to her forever, she had already come to terms with the fact that her feelings for him didn’t really extend beyond friendship.

“For old times sake?” he tries, again.

Maybe her mother had a point, though. She could try again but this time keep her expectations in check. This time, she wouldn’t expect him to be her best friend and her boyfriend. Maybe taking the pressure off of the both of them would leave room for something to grow. Maybe, everything she was going through with Valentina really was because she was just lonely.

“Ok,” she finally states. “Not tonight, though.”

Today was already too much.

“Tomorrow?” he asks, his voice full of hope.

“Tomorrow,” she agrees.

~~~

Juliana steps carefully off of the city bus, making sure to avoid any potholes or unfortunate items on the sidewalk. It had been a long day. _Hell._ It had been a long week. She was looking forward to getting home and sequestering herself on the couch for the weekend.

She had gone to lunch with her ex-boyfriend last weekend. Something about having a meal in the daylight seemed like a better bet for keeping things friendly. Juliana wasn’t ready for complicated dinners or the pressure of dressing up. Not that this approach had really deterred Nico from romantic gestures. He had shown up with more flowers and a fountain of compliments. Juliana was thankful for his naturally outgoing nature. He carried most of the conversation for the duration of their meal.

Nico had offered her a lengthy explanation of why he chose to part from her a month ago, and the resulting anguish the decision had caused him. Juliana was sure that he had conveniently left out some of the more joyful opportunities that their breakup had afforded him. She didn’t really care, though. As much as seeing him again did stir up a few buried emotions, she still felt numb to his advances.

She enjoyed his company, but it just wasn’t the same anymore. She couldn’t tell if that was due to their history or because everything felt less than after Valentina. When Nico had kissed her at the end of their date, she tried her best to kiss him back. She pressed into him, searching for anything that would give her a glimmer of hope for them. The embrace was empty. So much so, that even Nico noticed the change. When they parted, he had stared at her. His mouth shifted into a sad smile and he asked if it was over. His question came across more like a statement. Juliana had simply nodded.

For all his self centered tendencies, Nico wasn’t a bad guy. They followed their lunch date up with a trip to get ice cream—as friends. He told her he had started to suspect that things were different during dinner, but had to give it one last try. It was then that he asked her if there was someone else. Juliana had answered honestly, but couldn’t bring herself to share any details.

It had been nearly seven days since she had seen or heard from Valentina. She hadn’t attempted to contact the other woman.

Juliana had stumbled across some photos in her feed of Valentina’s family birthday celebration this past weekend. Simply scrolling through the photos had nearly made her heart fall out of her chest. Juliana decided then that she wasn’t ready to see her yet.

She honestly didn’t know if she’d ever be ready. She didn’t know where to start. All she knew was that she needed time and space to gain some sort of objectivity. That was the only way she could be fair to Valentina. She owed that to her. Although, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she could have at least offered an apology in the meantime.

Her mind started to revert back to that window between their one night stand and the day she ran into Valentina at the coffee shop. During that blissfully ignorant time, she had convinced herself that Valentina had most likely forgotten all about their encounter. It was just another crazy night for the heiress—a forgettable one of many. As much as she wanted to be special to the other woman, the idea of being nothing to her alleviated Juliana’s guilt.

Maybe one day she could apologize to Valentina, and they could genuinely be friends. Surprisingly, that’s what had happened between her and Nico. They were texting pretty regularly, again. Her and Valentina’s lives were so different, though. She knew it was a long shot at best. It was all just a fantasy to placate her broken heart. She bites at the inside of her cheek to keep herself from frowning at the thought.

Juliana rounds the final set of stairs and makes the walk down the hallway to her apartment door. As she approaches, her steps slow to a halt.

A woman is sitting next to her front door. Her legs are crossed and her head is leaned back against the wall. As she gets closer, she notices her eyes are closed.

“Valentina?” Juliana questions. Her pulse starts to race.

Valentina slowly opens her eyes. She blinks rapidly a few times and stares up at Juliana.

“Hey,” she says softly.

Juliana can barely hear the other woman’s greeting over the thundering of her own heart. They stare at each other, both frozen by the reality of being in each other’s presence. Valentina’s eyes flicker and then she moves to stand up.

“Can we talk?” she asks, as she rises.

Juliana doesn’t trust her voice to respond to the question. She only offers a weak nod, as she takes the few steps to her front door to unlock it.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Each chapter, I feel like y'all are in a battle with yourselves to outdo the wonderful comments you left before. I'm feeling very loved. Thank you! Hope you enjoyed this chapter, as well :)


	13. Chapter 13

“Can I get you something to drink?”

Juliana’s question hangs in the air, as she turns around to look at Valentina. Their eyes connect momentarily, and then she looks down.

“Some water would be nice,” Valentina answers, watching her intently.

Juliana nods. She takes in a shaky breath, as she licks at her lips.

Just moments ago in the hall, she had barely been able to keep her hand steady enough to get the key into the door. She could feel the other woman’s stare against her back. She shifted uncomfortably in her gaze, desperately trying to stay focused on the simple task at hand of opening her front door. Now, they are standing inside her apartment maintaining a polite distance from each other.

“Please. Have a seat,” she says with a small smile, as she motions towards her couch.

Juliana drops her work bag and jacket on the kitchen chair. She takes the few steps over to the refrigerator, and retrieves the water pitcher from inside.

“Just water?” Juliana asks over her shoulder.

She pulls a glass down from the cabinet and fills it from the pitcher. She then turns back around and watches as Valentina walks over and sits close to the end of the couch. Valentina leans forward, placing something on the coffee table. Her slight frame and hands fidget nervously as she settles back.

“Yes,” Valentina confirms, looking up at her. “I’m trying this new thing where I hydrate myself.”

Juliana responds with a closed-mouth smile. She makes the short walk over to the couch and then hands the glass to her. Valentina offers her a soft, “thanks.” The corner of her mouth draws up, as she bites at her bottom lip. Juliana takes a seat next to her, and they stare at each other for a moment. It’s the longest eye contact Juliana has been able to maintain since they entered the apartment.

Valentina is the first to break their gaze. She glances towards the small table next to them.

“I brought you something,” she says matter-of-factly.

Juliana follows Valentina’s eye line, finally noticing the plate of cookies that apparently the other woman had had with her this whole time. Her eyebrows raise in surprise. She opens her mouth to speak, but before she can Valentina continues.

“I made them myself,” she explains, as she picks up the plate. She removes the single layer of saran wrap covering them. “I tried to spell out ‘SORRY’ with chocolate chips, but then they melted in the oven and it got all weird. They just look like some sort of cult symbols or something.”

Valentina eyes the cookies skeptically. She rotates the angle of the plate to better evaluate the configuration of the dark brown blobs of chocolate that sit on top. Juliana feels herself fighting the smirk forming on her lips, as her eyes bounce from Valentina’s inquisitive face to the plate. When the other woman moves the dish towards her, Juliana politely takes a cookie. Valentina selects her own and sets the plate back down on the table.

Juliana takes a small bite and chews slowly. She watches Valentina do the same. Their eyes lock together, and they both still their jaws.

“These are terrible,” Valentina mumbles over the half-eaten piece in her mouth.

There’s the smallest moment of pause and then both women can’t hold back the laughter that bubbles up from them. Juliana covers her mouth and nods in agreement, as she attempts to politely finish the piece of cookie she’s still chewing. Valentina hurriedly takes a drink of water, struggling a little to swallow through her laugh. She extends the glass out. Juliana quickly accepts it and takes a sip of her own.

As they both calm, Juliana hands the cup back to Valentina. It reminds her of that first night on the couch when they had passed a water bottle back and forth. There’s a similar tension floating between them. But, now, it’s for an entirely different reason.

Juliana flexes her jaw, as she looks down at her hands.

“I’m sorry, too,” she says quietly.

Valentina nods slowly, as she takes in her words.

“I know there’s no excuse for the way I behaved,” Juliana continues. “I don’t know how to…”

The words stall on her lips. She swallows thickly and closes her eyes.

“I lied.”

Juliana opens her eyes at Valentina’s statement, as her brow scrunches in confusion.

“I said I mostly only remembered my toilet seat, but that’s not what I remember from that night.”

Valentina leans back a little into the couch. She places her arm across the back of it, angling her body to face Juliana. She looks up to the ceiling for a moment, taking in a deep breath. Then her chin drops back down and her eyes connect with Juliana’s.

“I remember you hugging me by the front door. I remember how warm and calm I felt with your arms around me. I remember not wanting to let you go, but having an apartment full of people that just showed up out of the blue that I had to deal with.”

Valentina stares at Juliana determinedly, her vulnerable state clear in her eyes. She takes another breath and then continues.

“I remember kissing you in my room. I remember you kissing me back and feeling like I could just melt into a puddle right then and there. I remember watching Sergio flirt with you. I remember wanting to tell him to back off. That you were spoken for. That those eyes and that laughter and your lips were mine. And, then I remember realizing I had absolutely no right to feel that way.”

A sheen of tears appears across Valentina’s eyes, and Juliana feels her chest start to shake slightly in response.

“I drank way too much that night,” Valentina says and then pauses. A sad smile forms on her lips. “I tried to cover all of these emotions with alcohol and sex, but I remember them all.”

A few tears escape from Valentina’s eyes as she blinks. Juliana reaches forward to wipe them from the other woman’s cheeks.

“Don’t cry,” she whispers faintly, cupping Valentina’s face in her hands.

“I haven’t been able to do much else.”

Juliana pouts in response, and Valentina looks down shyly. She drops her hands away and brings them back to her lap.

“Me too,” she confesses.

Juliana bites at her bottom lip, as she surveys the other woman’s face. This week had done nothing for her objectivity. The minute she saw Valentina on her doorstep, Juliana’s heart instantly filled with overwhelming hope. Her nerves had helped in tempering her expectations since the reason for Valentina’s sudden presence was still unknown. But showing up like this. Telling her all the things she remembered. Baking those unfortunate cookies. It all made her feel as though she wasn’t alone in the intensity of her infatuation.

“We’ve done this all backwards, haven’t we?”

Valentina purses her lips, as she offers a small nod. Juliana watches her closely.

Juliana had no idea how they arrived here. It felt like just yesterday that she was walking through that foggy night club. But whenever Valentina was near her, it also felt deeply familiar—like somewhere she had always been.

“You were supposed to be a one night stand,” Juliana states.

Her mouth shifts into a closed mouth smile, as she wipes at her own eyes.

“Tell me about it,” Valentina replies, with a small scoff. “I thought you were going back to Texas, and I’d never see you, again.”

She shakes her head and smiles openly.

There’s something about the shift in her energy that makes Juliana feel like she’s seeing Valentina for the first time in a week. She swallows back her nerves and takes in a deep breath. Juliana can’t take her eyes away from the other woman. She feels the seconds tick by, her pulse steady and thrumming in her ears.

“I don’t understand how I can know so little about you, but feel so much for you.”

They both pause at Juliana’s confession.

Juliana’s heart pounds in her chest. She watches as Valentina’s head tilts ever so slightly and her eyes soften. She then reaches out slowly, placing her hand on Juliana’s knee. Valentina’s lips fall a bit apart, and she lets out a short breath.

“I swear I’m not trying to steal your line. But would you like to have dinner with me this weekend?”

The quiet settles between them, their gaze staying locked on each other. Juliana keeps her lips pressed together as her mouth shifts into a small smile.

“Like a real date,” Valentina explains, leaning forward. “One where we have a meal and actually talk to each other. Not where we say we’re going to talk and then just shove our tongues down each other’s throats.”

“That sounds nice.”

“Which part?”

“All of it,” Juliana answers quickly. “But the date part, specifically.”

Valentina smiles in response. Her eyes narrow ever so slightly, and then Juliana watches them drift down to her mouth and settle there.

“Ok,” she says, abruptly. “I’m going to go.”

She stands up quickly from the couch and turns in a small circle. Juliana finds herself charmed by the other woman’s clearly flustered state. Valentina takes a few steps towards the door, and Juliana jumps up to follow closely behind her. She doesn’t want their time together to end, but understands the need to put a little breathing room between them after that conversation.

Valentina opens the door and then steps out. She turns around and places one arm up, leaning against the doorframe.

“So I’ll pick you up here tomorrow at seven?” Valentina asks.

Juliana nods in agreement. She reaches out, grasping onto Valentina’s forearm that hangs at her side. Her hand slides down smooth skin and their fingers intertwine. Juliana takes a small step forward.

“Good night,” she says, her mouth hovering close to the other woman’s.

Valentina licks at her lips, as she releases a small uneven breath. Her mouth twitches into a soft smile.

“Night,” she whispers. She squeezes Juliana’s hand lightly and then steps away.

~~~

Juliana sits back in her chair, a wine glass perched in her hand. She watches Valentina poke at what’s left of their shared dessert with the tines of her fork. Juliana takes a sip of her drink and then her mouth shifts into a lazy smile.

The other woman had shown up promptly at her door at seven for their date. Valentina, of course, looked perfect in this well-fitted dress from an exclusive designer that Juliana was familiar with. Valentina’s driver, who she vaguely remembers from that first night at the club, drove them to the restaurant. The place was much too expensive for Juliana to have ever stepped foot in before, but the other woman insisted it was just one of her family’s favorite places for a casual dinner. Juliana quickly discovered that their opinions on what ingredients and prices fell into the category of ‘casual’ were vastly different. But the conversation and wine flowed easily throughout the evening, making it effortless to take pleasure in each other’s company.

Juliana hadn’t really thought very much about the whole money thing until Sergio brought it up the night of Valentina’s birthday. She didn’t believe he was trying to upset her. He was just pointing out a reality between her and the other woman—one that didn’t mean much until the nature of their relationship started to take a more serious turn.

Juliana had leaned on the information as a cheap way to upset Valentina that fateful morning. It was an easy target for her already mounting insecurities. She felt a little uncomfortable about the amount of money that was being spent this evening, but she held her tongue as she didn’t want the other woman to think it was genuinely a concern. If how tonight was going was any indication of their future, it would be like everything else. It was just something they’d figure out together.

“You’ve gone quiet,” Valentina comments, as she licks her fork and sets it down on the plate. “Everything ok?”

Juliana nods. The smile still fixed on her lips.

“I just like watching you use your mouth.”

Valentina rolls her eyes playfully at Juliana’s observation and shakes her head.

“Don’t you start.”

Juliana laughs lightly in response and sits forward. She eyes the other woman, as a random memory flutters through her thoughts.

“Did I tell you about how the other night when you were… compromised… that you started arguing with your clothes?”

“What?” Valentina asks, her eyebrow raising in question.

“You very slowly disrobed, telling off each piece of clothing as you removed it,” Juliana explains.

“I think I’m good. I don’t need to hear anymore,” Valentina says, as she covers her eyes with her hand and bites at the inside of her cheek.

Juliana attempts to reach across the small table and gently pull Valentina’s hand from her face, as she continues the story.

“When you started yelling at your panties that they were holding you back from the life you were meant to lead, I lost it. I gave up on any hope of getting you into your pajamas.”

“Stop!” the other woman exclaims through her laughter.

Valentina reverses the situation and is now grabbing out for Juliana’s hand. Juliana laughs in response, as she watches the other woman’s face turn red in embarrassment. She attempts to dodge her grasp, but Valentina finally succeeds and grips her hand.

“This is now officially the worst date I’ve ever been on.”

“Yeah?” Juliana asks, the laughter dying on her lips.

Valentina’s grip lessens and they move their joined hands to slide against each others gently.

“Yeah,” Valentina responds. She looks down and smiles softly, as Juliana’s thumb strokes her palm. “I’ve never had it this bad before.”

“Me either.”

Their eyes settle on each other and Juliana feels her chest flutter. She wants to toss the table between them aside. She wants to pull Valentina into her, as she wraps her arm around her waist. She wants to bring her lips as close as possible to Valentina’s and tell her that if this is what love feels like then she had never been in love before. Based on the deep breaths they were sharing in unison, she decides to just trust that the other woman already knows.

“Let’s get out of here,” Valentina whispers.

Juliana nods quickly.

~~~

The women leave no space between them in the backseat of the SUV on the return trip to Juliana’s apartment. Their intertwined hands have stayed connected since the end of dinner and now sit on Valentina’s thigh. Juliana leans in, resting her head on Valentina’s shoulder as the other woman’s cheek brushes against the top of her head. Juliana brings up her other hand to play with Valentina’s fingers.

The ride is mostly silent, as they take the time to just enjoy being in each other’s space. When they arrive at Juliana’s building, Valentina escorts her up. On the approach to her front door, Juliana can hear Valentina’s soft labored breaths from the mix of nerves and three flights of stairs. Juliana offers her a knowing smile and runs her hand soothingly up and down the other woman’s arm.

“Do you want to come in?” she asks quietly.

Valentina’s cheeks pink and she shakes her head. Juliana lifts her brow, as her eyes plead for a different answer.

“It’s our first date. I’m trying to be good,” the other woman whispers.

“Hold that thought,” Juliana says and then she moves forward.

She captures Valentina’s lips in a gentle kiss. They melt into each other, simply indulging in the embrace for a moment. Valentina’s parted mouth massages against hers tenderly and then Juliana draws back ever so slowly. When Juliana’s eyes flutter open, she notices that Valentina’s still remain closed. Her eyes dance over the other woman’s face, as she leans back against her door.

“Ok. Now you can be good,” she states.

Valentina’s lips draw up into a smile, as she finally opens her eyes.

“I don’t want this night to be over.”

“Then come in,” Juliana offers, again. “We can hang out and watch some TV. Maybe I can even dig up a puzzle.”

Valentina laughs lightly at her comment.

“We can do this,” she affirms.

They stare at each other for a minute and then Valentina reaches down. She opens her purse and pulls out her phone. Juliana watches her fingers move swiftly across the screen, as she types out a text. She hits send and looks up.

“Just wanted to let Alirio know it was ok to go.”

Juliana bites her bottom lip, as she turns to unlock the door. It goes quicker this time around. Valentina’s gaze on her back feels warm and welcome. Juliana then reaches behind her, taking Valentina’s hand in her own. She leads them through the door into her apartment.

~~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you that are counting, yes, next chapter is our last and will contain our 5th and final morning. If the rolling power blackouts in CA don't get me, hopefully I'll be able to work on it this weekend.
> 
> I'm still in total awe of the comments y'all have been leaving. Every one is just fantastic. When I get a free moment here lately, my biggest internal battle is do I work on the story or respond to all you beautiful people. I've been opting for the story, but I hope you know that I read every comment and getting them is like the highlight of my day.
> 
> I know this chapter was a little short, but I hope y'all enjoyed their long awaited talk. And, don't worry. They've got more talking to do! :)


	14. Chapter 14

“I don’t understand. Why is he helping her?”

Valentina motions towards the television from her seat on the couch, as she asks the question. Her hands are extended out in front of her with her palms up. Juliana watches her, as she makes her way from the kitchen into the living room. She approaches with two glasses of water and sits closely next to the other woman. She eyes the screen for a moment.

“There were only a few minutes left,” she responds. “She hadn’t finished with her decorations, and she couldn’t not complete her Showstopper.”

“But this is a competition,” Valentina states, as she accepts one of the glasses.

Juliana’s eyebrows and shoulders lift, as she offers a small shrug.

“What can I say? They’re British. I still can’t believe you’ve never seen this show before.”

Her words hang between them, as she examines the other woman’s profile. Valentina’s attention is still fixed to the tv screen in front of them.

“I mean, with your baking skills, I shouldn’t be entirely surprised,” Juliana comments, teasingly.

Valentina cuts her eyes towards her and smirks in response. She takes a quick sip of her water.

“Thanks,” she says softly. She raises the glass a little to indicate that, even though she’s not thrilled with Juliana’s observation, she is grateful for the drink. “I can’t believe you’re going to mock my baking, after I came all this way to bring you those cookies yesterday.”

“Oh. It was the travel that made them taste that way?”

“You’re relentless,” Valentina replies, with a small laugh.

She settles back into the couch cushions and turns her head to look at Juliana. Their eyes connect, and Juliana can’t help but reflect the open smile that is across the other woman’s lips. She takes a drink of her own water and sets the cup down on the coffee table in front of them. She watches Valentina glance back towards the tv. Juliana was very pleased that Valentina had accepted her offer to come in after their date this evening. They had immediately made their way to the couch and chose something on Netflix to entertain them. A little over halfway into the first episode, she had retreated to the kitchen to grab water for them both.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Juliana says, as she turns in her seat a little. She moves her arm to the back of the sofa. “How did you find out where I live?”

The room goes quiet for a second. The voices coming from the tv are the only sounds in the apartment. Juliana’s concerned that maybe her question hadn’t registered with the other woman.

“Didn’t you hear?” Valentina finally says, keeping her eyes focused on the screen. “I’m rich and powerful. I have access to any information I want.”

Juliana feels her nerves rise a little. Valentina turns towards her, as her eyes narrow and lips purse. Her stare is telling. As much as Juliana would love to erase what happened between them the other morning, she knows it doesn’t go away that easily. The trace of bitterness in the other woman’s words is completely warranted. Valentina raises an eyebrow, and then her disposition suddenly softens.

“I asked Sergio if he could find out. Your cousin told me.”

Juliana lets out a shaky breath. She’s aware that Valentina is mostly teasing her, but she can’t help but feel that any anger the other woman may harbor about the topic is totally deserved.

“I’m sorry about all of that,” she offers weakly. She looks down at her hands, as her teeth sink into her bottom lip. “… About the things I said. I was feeling insecure with your friends around. I came into the situation already so scared that I didn’t really mean anything to you. Then Sergio said all this stuff about you and Lucho. It made me feel like I couldn’t compete. Like I had nothing to offer. It made me second guess the things I do know about you. It wasn’t fair.”

Juliana looks back up, meeting Valentina’s gaze. The other woman places her glass down on the table next to Juliana’s. She leans closer making stronger eye contact, her blue eyes bright and inquisitive.

“And, what is it that you know about me, Juliana Valdés?”

As the question rolls from Valentina’s mouth, Juliana lips twitch into a small smile. She shifts a little closer to the other woman, and reaches out to push a strand of hair back. Her fingertips slide just above the shell of Valentina’s ear and then down through to the ends of her hair that rests against her arm. Juliana’s gaze follows the path of her hand, and then her eyes flutter up connecting with the other woman.

“I know how attentive and selfless you are. Like how you can meet a stranger in a club and spend fifteen minutes dancing with her. And, already read her so well that you know when to step in and help save her from some random aggressive guy.”

Valentina nods slowly, biting at the corner of her lip.

“That sounds familiar,” she states.

“How about when you insist that a stranger borrows your clothes so she doesn’t have to travel so far in the morning for work, and you remember to include a pair of underwear, as well?”

“That’s just common courtesy,” the other woman replies, as her shoulders rise up. “Especially, considering I’m to blame for the state of the previous underwear that the stranger arrived in.”

Juliana can’t stop the small laugh that escapes her lips. Valentina shifts even closer, her hand coming to rest on Juliana’s thigh. She watches as the other woman’s tongue works to lick at her lips.

“How about when someone really messes up and then runs away? You don’t let the stranger just disappear. You show up at her door, wait for her to get home from her long work day and two bus transfer commute, and offer her apologies when she can’t even offer them herself.”

They watch each other, as Juliana swallows back her mounting emotion. Her chest rises and falls deeply. The other woman’s eyes affix on hers.

“This _stranger_ sounds like a lot of trouble,” Valentina says, as she leans towards Juliana.

She closes the distance quickly, capturing her lips. Juliana brings her hand up to Valentina’s neck and buries her fingers in the dark locks behind the other woman’s head. She then adjusts her position, deepening the connection. She licks at Valentina’s full bottom lip and the other woman opens her mouth in response. Their tongues slide together gently. Juliana feels Valentina’s hand move to her hip and grip her softly. Her thumb caresses her in small circles there.

There’s no sense of urgency in their kiss. The tenderness and proximity are all they desire. Their lips move against each others smoothly. Juliana takes in a deep breath through her nose, unwilling to break their embrace for something that feels as unimportant in this moment as oxygen. She can sense that familiar tension building between them, again. Valentina pulls back, keeping their foreheads connected but putting a little space between their mouths. She takes a few breaths to calm.

Juliana respects the other woman’s need for a break and gently pushes at Valentina’s chest as she sits back.

“You want to watch another episode?” Juliana asks, attempting to de-escalate the intensity in the air.

Valentina opens her eyes to look at her. Stuttered breaths escape through her wet lips. She watches her for a second.

“Sure,” she finally answers.

Juliana picks up the remote to select the next show. She glances over at Valentina, who is reaching down to remove her heels from her feet. The woman then sits up and looks to her left and right. She spots a throw pillow and moves it to Juliana’s lap. She lowers her body and lays her head on the pillow, stretching her legs out along the couch. Juliana settles deeper into her seat, pressing ‘play’ on the remote.

“I take it my cousin told you my last name, too.”

“She’s a fountain of information,” Valentina replies flatly.

Juliana smiles. She moves her hand to Valentina’s head, running her fingers soothingly in a repeating pattern through the other woman’s hair.

“By the way, what’s your last name?”

“Carvajal,” Valentina answers quickly.

Juliana freezes for a moment, as her mouth drops open slightly.

“Like as in Carvajal Media Group?”

Valentina hums in response.

Juliana hadn’t been in Mexico long, but she was familiar with the company, as they owned the largest fashion publication in Central America. When Valentina had told her that she worked for her family business, it hadn’t registered with her exactly who that family was. It didn’t really matter at the time. It doesn’t really matter now. Juliana just finds herself momentarily caught off guard by the randomness of it all. She shakes her head and focuses on the screen.

“Oh, perfect. It’s the ‘biscuits week’ episode,” she says, looking down at the woman resting in her lap. “Pay close attention.”

Valentina huffs, as she snuggles in tighter.

~~~

Juliana slowly opens her eyes, taking in the view of the living room ceiling above her. Her head is leaned back, resting on top of the sofa cushion behind her. Her neck aches a little, as she pulls her head forward. Her eyes blink rapidly and her sight adjusts. The single lamp in the room and the overhead oven light in the adjoining kitchen are the only things lighting the space. The tv has timed out and the screen is black.

Juliana rolls her shoulders, as she lets out a short yawn. She glances down at Valentina, who is still sleeping soundly in her lap. She watches her for a moment, as she begins running her fingers rhythmically through her hair. Juliana is trying so hard to keep her mother’s words in mind, but her chest thumps at the sight. Her heart doesn’t seem the least bit interested in gaining her permission to feel this way. This had to be an exception. This was like nothing she had experienced before.

“Val,” she says softly, as she continues to move her fingers.

She repeats her name, again. Valentina finally twitches in response, turning her head to look up at Juliana.

“Oh god,” she says, as she sits up groggily. She immediately rubs at her eyes. “What time is it?”

“It’s a little after three,” Juliana answers.

She tilts her neck, as she massages it and then slides forward to the end of the seat. Juliana watches the other woman pick up her phone and begin tapping at the screen.

“You’re not calling Alirio, are you?”

“Oh, no,” Valentina answers quickly. “I’ll get an Uber.”

“It’s late,” Juliana says, reaching out. “Let’s just go to bed.”

She grabs onto the other woman’s forearm drawing Valentina’s attention to her. The concern in Valentina’s eyes causes Juliana’s mouth to shift into the slightest pout. She takes the other woman’s hand in her own and stands up.

“Come on,” she whispers.

Juliana leads them into her bedroom and motions for Valentina to take a seat on the end of the bed. She retrieves a couple t-shirts and shorts for them from her dresser. Juliana places one set on the bed next to the other woman, keeping the other set in her arms.

“I’ll be right back,” she states, as she slips into the adjoining bathroom.

Juliana quickly disrobes, changing into her pajamas. She then works through her evening routine of washing her face and brushing her teeth. Her mind is a little on autopilot between the late hour and her week of emotional exhaustion. She just wants to crawl into bed with Valentina and sleep for a few days. When she emerges from the bathroom, she finds Valentina is still sitting in the exact same spot looking like she hadn’t moved a muscle.

“You ok?” she asks, as she approaches her.

Valentina sleepily nods.

“I realized that I needed help getting out of my dress, and then I kind of just gave up and checked out.”

Juliana smiles in response. Valentina’s adorably heavy-eyed disposition is the sweetest thing she has seen in a while. She extends her hands out in an effort to help the other woman stand. When she makes it to her feet, Juliana locates the zipper at the back of her dress and pulls it down ever so slowly. The smooth expanse of Valentina’s back comes into view, and she feels her breath catch. She lowers the zipper down to her waist and then steps back.

“I think you can get it from there,” Juliana says softly.

Valentina holds the front of her dress to keep it from slipping and turns her head to the side to look back at Juliana over her shoulder. A closed-mouth smile adorns her face, as she stares at her.

“I left some makeup remover and an extra toothbrush on the counter for you to use if you like.”

Valentina nods and then walks towards the bathroom. Juliana feels powerless to do anything but watch the other woman make her way. As the door closes, she lets out a long breath. She then spots the t-shirt and shorts still sitting on the bed. She scoops them up and follows Valentina’s path. Juliana knocks gently on the bathroom door and waits. A moment passes and then Valentina opens the door. Her dress is off, and she’s standing there in her bra and panties. Juliana can’t stop her gaze from drifting down the other woman’s body and then back up. She swallows thickly and then extends the clothes she has for Valentina out in front of her.

“You forgot these.”

“Thanks,” Valentina says.

She places her hands over Juliana’s and holds them there. Neither woman makes any motion to move or break their mutual stare. Juliana lets out a small incredulous laugh. She feels her tongue move to press against the back of her teeth and watches the other woman’s eyes drift down to her mouth. Juliana steps just inside the bathroom, setting the clothes on the counter.

“See you in a sec,” she whispers in Valentina’s ear and kisses her softly on the cheek.

Her escape from the bathroom is swift. She pulls at the handle on the door to close it on her way out. Juliana then works her way around the small apartment, making sure all doors are locked and appropriate lights are off. She settles under the covers on her usual side of the bed and plugs in her phone to charge. She glances through her social feeds, as she waits for Valentina to return. It doesn’t take long before the other woman exits the bathroom and slips into bed next to her.

Juliana sets her phone on the bedside table and joins her hands, resting them on her stomach. The room goes quiet as both women lay on their backs staring up at the ceiling. The sleep that was so appealing mere minutes ago now feels like a distant possibility. Juliana turns on her side to face Valentina, and then the other woman turns mirroring her position.

“Now I’m awake,” Juliana says quietly.

“Me too.”

The women watch each other for a moment. Juliana feels like she could stare at Valentina forever. Any awkwardness from before has been replaced by the excitement of just being able to gaze at each other so openly.

“Can I kiss you?” Juliana asks.

Valentina nods quickly and both women move forward into each other’s space. Juliana cups the back of Valentina’s neck, as the other woman’s hand settles on her waist. Their lips meet in an open embrace. Juliana feels Valentina smile into their kiss, and she moves closer in response. Their legs intertwine, allowing their chests to press flush against each other.

They continue to kiss, deep and lingering passes that push and pull at their joined lips. Juliana brings Valentina’s tongue into her mouth, softly sucking at the flesh and then releasing it. Valentina’s hips gently jerk in response and it starts the pair on a slow, gentle grinding. Juliana’s hands wander under the other woman’s t-shirt and rake across her soft stomach. The sensations all mix together, working to build an intense heat between them. Valentina’s hands grasp onto Juliana’s thighs, as they continue to roll against each other.

“Val…”

The desperate plea slips from Juliana’s mouth, followed by a soft moan.

“Wait,” Valentina calls out, bringing them to a halt. She withdrawals from their embrace. “I don’t want to push you.”

“What?” Juliana asks. She’s breathless and confused, waiting for the blood to return to her brain.

“The other night I wasn’t right,” Valentina explains. “I want you to know that I would never do that. We can take this slow. We don’t have to rush into anything. I don’t expect anything from you just because of what we’ve done before.”

Juliana releases a flustered breath. Her first instinct is to call out the fact that, in this instance, she was the one that was rushing. But the honest fear in Valentina’s eyes makes her take pause.

“Val,” she says. The woman’s name slips from her mouth in a more solemn tone than her needy cry from before. “I want us to take our time, too. I want to get to know everything about you and have the opportunity to just enjoy being in your company. But, I also have no interest in stopping this physical connection we share.”

“I just want you to know, first and foremost, that I respect you. I want to be a good friend.”

Valentina eyes Juliana intently, her brow scrunched in earnest concern. Juliana offers her a small, grateful smile.

“Please don’t take this the wrong way,” she responds, her breaths deepening with each second. “But I don’t want to be your friend.”

The meaning of Juliana’s words washes over Valentina, and her features visibly relax. A beat passes between them and then Juliana is pushing forward, again. She reconnects their mouths and gives Valentina a long, deep kiss. She wants there to be no confusion in exactly the way she feels about the other woman, so she pours everything she can into the embrace. Juliana then pulls back and their eyes lock onto each others.

The other woman rolls to her back, and Juliana crawls over her. She reaches up behind herself, clutching at the back of her shirt. Juliana grips it tightly in her fist and tugs at the garment, sliding it over her head and off her body. As she tosses it to the side, she watches Valentina reach down and pull her own shirt off. Valentina then lifts her hands, pushing Juliana’s hair back over her shoulders as they continue to stare at each other. Juliana decides then and there that she wants no barriers between them. She slips her thumbs inside the sides of her shorts and underwear, pushing them down her legs. Then she helps Valentina out of hers.

Juliana lets out a long breath, as she settles her completely bare skin against the woman underneath her. It’s been much too long since the last time they connected like this. Valentina glides her hands down along Juliana’s back. She cups her backside, pulling forward and reconnecting their hips in a similar position as before. Juliana immediately feels the other woman’s heat on her thigh and fights the moan attempting to escape her throat. She lays warm kisses across her neck, and Valentina turns her head, giving her greater access as she nips and licks at the skin.

She doesn’t know if it’s the sensation of their warm bodies or the constant friction of their hips in motion or the luscious taste and smell of Valentina, but Juliana feels utterly entranced. Heat settles in the pit of her stomach and then moves even lower. Before Valentina, she had never felt such a strong need to touch and be touched. The physicality of their connection seems like the manifestation of something much deeper. Like her body has only been acting on behalf of a greater force this whole time.

When those thoughts consume Juliana’s mind, she can’t help but laugh at herself. It all sounds so utterly overdramatic and not anything like the practical reasoning she’s had throughout her entire life. She couldn’t even commit to the idea of staying in Mexico City long term, because the reality of her career actually working out didn’t seem reasonable enough. But she’s found that there is no reason when it comes to Valentina. She was this force that swept in uninvited and made Juliana start dreaming of anniversaries and white picket fences. Her brain was being held hostage by the beautiful creature beneath her.

Juliana pulls her lips back from the breast she had turned her attention to. She moves her head directly over Valentina’s, staring deeply into her eyes. Their speed has picked up a little, as they continue the unrelenting grinding of their hips. Their hot breaths mingle, as a sheen of sweat begins to form on their skin. Juliana snakes her hand down and moves her fingers between Valentina’s legs. She strokes at her repeatedly, urging her to open up a little further. When she does, Juliana’s wet fingers slip inside of her easily. She moves up to her knees to give herself space to work, as their motion continues. 

Juliana’s arm flexes as she holds herself over the other woman. She feels Valentina move her hand down, as well. The other woman’s fingers circle her entrance a few times. Then they push up inside her, rendering Juliana motionless. Her forehead drops down to make contact with Valentina’s, as she moans in response.

“Is this ok?” Valentina whispers.

“Yes,” Juliana answers through a shaky breath.

She pulls her head back to look at the other woman. They both still for a moment and then slowly resume their motion, matching each other’s rhythm. Juliana dips down, capturing Valentina’s mouth with her own. She kisses her lazily, her wet lips massage the other woman’s over and over. Juliana hears Valentina whimper below her, and it urges her on. They pick up the tempo, pushing faster and deeper into each other.

It’s a challenge to focus on giving pleasure as she receives it, but Juliana is more than happy to give it her best shot. Being inside the other woman turns her on beyond belief, and Juliana fights to not just drown in how needy she feels in this moment.

Her hips grind down wantonly, as she unabashedly chases her release. Their persistent rhythm is driving her towards the edge. Juliana attempts to regain focus on the task at hand. Before she can stop herself, she finds things have gone too far. She’s crossed the point of return and she cries out as she clenches and trembles around Valentina’s fingers.

As soon as Juliana can make sense of her surroundings, she lowers back down to crush her lips against the other woman’s. Her tongue extends out, moving deeply into Valentina’s mouth. She licks at the back of her teeth and the inside of her lips. Juliana pulls back, taking in a large breath. Then she returns her attentions to the other woman’s mouth, kissing her like it’s the only thing keeping either of them alive.

Juliana slowly resumes the motion of her fingers. She feels inspired and determined and destined to give Valentina the same pleasure she just received. With a newfound energy, she pumps deeply bringing her palm up to massage the other woman’s most sensitive spot as she works. Juliana is swallowing Valentina’s guttural whines with each kiss. Their bodies move erratically, attempting to fulfill their desire. As Valentina starts to show signs of her impending climax, Juliana draws back to watch her.

Their eyes connect, as Valentina’s lower jaw sets forward and short staccato breaths puff against her lips.

“Don’t stop,” she pleads.

Juliana huffs in response. As if she has any choice.

Valentina rolls hard against her hand. Their intense motion echoes throughout the room and applies pressure repeatedly to the aching mattress springs below them. Valentina digs her fingernails into Juliana’s back, as her body stiffens and arches off the bed. Her head lolls back, as a long, strained moan emerges from her lungs.

“Juls” gets repeated in Juliana’s ear over and over again, as Valentina writhes beneath her.

She feels Valentina’s palms on either side of her face, pulling her by the cheeks towards Valentina’s mouth. The other woman’s kisses are filled with whimpers, as she continues to move her hips. Juliana can feel the tremors that ripple through her. Only when Valentina’s body goes completely slack, does Juliana pull out. She lowers her body fully onto the other woman. Valentina’s arms encircle her neck, and Juliana allows herself to be embraced in a crushing hug that extends from head to toe.

~~~

Juliana twirls a strand of Valentina’s hair around her index finger and then releases it. She repeats the motion, letting out a very soft sigh. The morning sun is just starting to peak through the curtains, as the women rest comfortably in bed. Valentina is laying on her stomach, her upper body propped up by her arms. She seems content to just stare down at Juliana with a soft smile on her lips.

The thin sheet on the bed just barely covers their lower bodies. Juliana still feels warm from their earlier encounter. Her mind should be wiped from their previous activities, but her thoughts still insist on circling. They’re like a leaf caught in the eddy of a babbling brook. She takes in a breath and then holds it. As her eyes meet with Valentina’s, she can see the prompting expression on the other woman’s face.

“I keep thinking about something you said yesterday,” Juliana admits.

Valentina nods slowly, as her eyebrow raises.

“The night of your birthday, did you really only invite me over?”

Valentina smiles shyly and then bites at her lip. She glances up, as she pauses.

“I was pretty exhausted from traveling the last couple weeks,” she answers. “When I thought about what I really wanted for my birthday, it was just some alone time with you. That day on the phone in Barcelona was just…” Valentina lets out an uneven breath and then continues. “I wanted more of that.”

Juliana stares at her in response. The corners of her mouth twitch up slightly and then shift into a full smile. She tilts her head. Juliana’s so far gone. She must have the dopiest look on her face.

“What?” Valentina asks, feeling the heat of her gaze.

Juliana shakes her head, her eyes are cast down for a moment as she returns to playing with the ends of Valentina’s hair.

“I feel silly asking this after our first date,” she admits.

“What?” the other woman whispers, again.

Juliana turns her hips and lays on her side. She rests her head on the pillow and tucks her hand underneath it. She eyes Valentina for a moment, her mouth hangs slightly open in hesitation.

“Will you be my girlfriend?”

Valentina stills at the question and reflects the open-mouthed expression Juliana had on her face just before.

“Well…” she says, taking a pause. “That is going to ruin the elaborate brunch marriage proposal I have planned.”

“You’ll do anything to get me to go to breakfast, won’t you?” Juliana replies quickly.

Valentina laughs lightly, and the women smile at each other. She then moves her hand down and slowly runs her fingertips across Juliana’s bare shoulder.

“My father has this psychiatrist friend that writes books about philosophy. There’s this one that talks about how some people come into our lives as beacons to show us the way or point us in a direction.”

Valentina’s eyes follow the path of her fingers, as they glide along Juliana’s arm and down to her hip, pushing at the sheet that rest on it. She circles her hipbone and then slides across her abdomen, as she continues.

“Then there’s these other people that enter our lives as fellow travelers. They’re companions as we make these trips. From the moment we met, you’ve always felt like a fellow traveler.”

Valentina’s eyes finally rise up, meeting Juliana’s again. They watch each other for a moment.

“Is that your really elaborate way of saying ‘yes’?” Juliana questions.

She watches Valentina’s lips spread slowly into a smile and then she nods. The other woman drops her head down to the mattress momentarily, letting out a soft squeal, and then she pulls her head back up. Her cheeks are flushed pink.

“That, and we’ve been sleeping together for almost a month so it doesn’t seem like that much of a stretch.”

Juliana laughs at Valentina’s words and reaches up, pulling the other woman to her. Valentina moves her upper body over Juliana, running the pad of her thumb across her lower lip. Her eyes move down to Juliana’s mouth, and then she dips down and kisses her soundly. Juliana responds to the embrace, placing her hand on the nape of the other woman’s neck and holding her there while she melts into her lips.

Valentina finally pulls back. Her eyes scan Juliana’s face.

“Seriously, though,” she states. “You. Me. Breakfast.”

“Ok. Ok,” Juliana acquiesces. “But it’s my treat. I know the perfect little place. They have the best pancakes.”

She eyes Valentina knowingly, as the other woman shakes her head and purses her lips. Juliana moves to sit up, but she finds herself pinned in place.

“They better be really good,” Valentina says. Her voice low. “Because they already have some stiff competition.”

“We could do a taste test,” Juliana offers.

Valentina rolls her eyes playfully, shifting her body fully on top of her.

“On second thought, maybe I should just grab a little something before we go.”

Her gaze moves down Juliana’s body suggestively. Juliana adjusts beneath her, bringing her legs up to wrap around the other woman’s hips.

“I like this plan,” she whispers, coaxing Valentina’s lips back down to her own.

The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had all these things I wanted to say at the end of this story, but I think I'll just settle with a good old fashioned Juliantina/Barbarena: "thank you." 
> 
> This fic was a personal challenge to see if I could get this trope to work for them. I honestly haven't had this much fun writing in a long time. The fact that y'all were responding so well was this amazing bonus on top of it. I'm not sure what's next. I've written a very high-level outline for the companion piece to this story, featuring Valentina's POV. So maybe that. I've got to flesh out some more details before I can feel totally on board with committing to it. But, either way, I look forward to returning!
> 
> As always, hope you enjoyed as much as I did :)


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